


Melody Over Reason

by GlitraHasConsumedMe



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Asexual Character, Bisexual Female Character, Drinking, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Lesbian Character, Mutual Pining, Punk, Punk Rock, Slow Burn, Swearing, Tension, Useless Lesbians, Useless Sapphics, useless bisexuals
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:27:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 28,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29158140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GlitraHasConsumedMe/pseuds/GlitraHasConsumedMe
Summary: The Rebellion- formerly the Horde until a change in management- is one of the biggest rock bands Brightmoon has ever seen, with popularity even starting to reach overseas to countries as far as Salineas.Catra's been in the band from day one, and is positive it's her calling in life to play bass with these people she's grown so used to.Catra's world seems to be completely thrown, however, when her lead guitarist and best friend Adora decides to bring in a replacement member to the team; The one person Catra can't seem to figure out, no matter how hard she tries.~~~Glitra Modern!Bandmates!AU
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora & Glimmer (She-Ra), Catra/Glimmer (She-Ra), Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 56
Kudos: 39





	1. Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there! Hope you enjoy my fic and please comment what you think because reading comments just makes my day haha <3

Catra strummed her bass anxiously, tapping her foot as she kept shooting glances towards the door.  
  
Where was Adora? Who had they brought to be Scorpia's replacement?  
  
Catra had been crushed to hear that Scorpia, lead singer of the Rebellion and one of Catra's closest- of very few- friends, had decided to quit the band to settle down with her girlfriend of two years somewhere in Plumeria.  
  
Now Catra was faced with a situation that was new to her. Catra hated change. Why did anything ever have to change?  
  
The brunette was forced out of her train of thought by the door to their temporary studio opening, her head whipping around only to sigh in a mixture of relief and disappointment upon seeing it was only her bandmates.  
  
"Is Adora here with our replacement?" Drummer Lonnie asked, causing Catra to cringe internally.  
  
_Replacement_. How she hated that word that **she** used to threaten her with growing up.  
  
She shook her head both in response and to push the thought away as keyboardist Mermista let out one of her signature groans. "When are they gonna be here? They're already like, _super late_."  
  
"But in that regard, my dear Mermista, so are we!" Sea Hawk, Mermista's on-again off-again boyfriend since the seventh grade, pointed out. Sea Hawk was a nice guy, Catra thought, which made her wonder why he chose to follow Mermista around like a puppy for so many years.  
  
Mermista simply rolled her eyes at his comment before slumping into her stool to scroll through her phone with her seemingly permanent expression of boredom.  
  
Catra tuned out for a few minutes as Lonnie and Mermista did some sound checks into their mics and played a bit to help warm themselves up, only pausing the strums on her bass long enough to glance occasionally at the door.  
  
"Hey! Hey, I'm _so_ sorry, I got lost on the way back!" Adora shouted frantically as the blonde came bursting into the soundproofed room. Their hair was in disarray, with bits clinging to the shaved half of their head with sweat as Catra scrunched up her nose a bit at the sight.  
  
"Yeah, that's great, but like- _Where's_ our new singer?" Mermista inquired, peaking the attention of everyone in the room to lock eyes on the spent blonde.  
  
"Oh- Well..." Adora trailed off, rubbing their neck, "A-About that-!"  
  
"Adora, can I come in yet?" Came a voice from the hallway- a voice Catra could sickeningly pick out of a crowd.  
  
_Partial_ reason for the worst time in her life: Glimmer Moonstone.  
  
"Oh fuck no." Catra deadpanned as Adora winced from the doorway.  
  
"J-Just a sec!" They called into the hall, shooting the bassist a pleading pair of puppy eyes.  
  
Catra groaned, slumping down onto her cushioned stool with a grunt as she glared at the guitarist.  
  
Soon enough the gremlin nightmare came into view behind Adora, offering the band a shy wave as she smiled nervously.  
  
Catra rolled her eyes with a scoff. Was this chick serious?  
  
"Uh, hey. I'm Glimmer." She said softly, side stepping around the blonde to come into the room as she ran a hand through her- in Catra's opinion, _horrendous_ \- pink hair.  
  
"We know." Mermista raised a brow, giving the girl a bored-looking once over before returning her gaze to her phone screen.  
  
"You went with _Sparkles_ as our singer?" Catra asked, her attention on the blonde and completely bypassing the shorter woman in front of her.  
  
"Catra..." Adora pleaded as Catra scoffed and stood abruptly so fast that her stool clattered to the floor.  
  
"No way. Veto. Not happening." Catra said, glaring at the blonde unwilling to back down.  
  
"Listen, Catra-" Catra cringed as the little she-devil said her name, "I don't know what beef you have with me, but-"  
  
" _Beef_?" Catra spat.  
  
"Here we go." Lonnie sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.  
  
"Who was it that ruined my life, exactly?"  
  
"Ruined your life?" Glimmer asked in disbelief.  
  
"O-Okay! Okay, stop!" Adora said, stepping between them as they glanced at both of their friends with a worried, panicked expression. This was _not_ going well.  
  
"Catra, we need a singer. Does it really matter who it is if she can sing?" Lonnie reasoned, resting a hand on her shoulder.  
  
Catra looked ready to argue before she caught Lonnie's eye, letting out a frustrated sigh. "No. It doesn't." She huffed.  
  
Adora sighed in relief and patted Glimmer on the back. "Uh, w-welcome to the Rebellion." They said with a weak chuckle.  
  
Glimmer smiled softly at them, nodding. "Thanks for having me."  
  
Catra rolled her eyes with a groan. "Listen, I'm not agreeing to any of this until I know whether or not she can sing."  
  
Glimmer blushed. Right, sing. She had to do that. In front of Catra. _Awesome_.  
  
"Sure, she can sing. Glimmer?" Adora grinned. Right, Adora. The lovable dork she'd had a huge crush on back in college who still managed to make Glimmer agree to anything with that grin of theirs long after her feelings faded.  
  
"Uh, sure. Mic?" Glimmer forced a grin, glancing around between the members.  
  
"Use Mermisa's! I shall warm it up for you with a shanty!" Sea Hawk announced, mic in hand as he stood.  
  
" _No_!" The rest of the band chimed in simultaneously as Lonnie snatched the microphone from his hand.  
  
"Uh, thanks, Sea Hawk." Glimmer mumbled, taking it from Lonnie's hand.  
  
She took a deep breath, blushing softly as her eyes locked with Catra's before closing them.  
  
" ** _Battle scars from broken hearts, take me away from here..._** " Glimmer began, her voice soft and smooth as it sent a shiver down Catra's spine. It didn't help that Glimmer was singing the first song she ever wrote for the band.  
  
" ** _Bottled emotions, burst like explosions, up in the stratosphere..._** "  
  
Catra swallowed dryly. How could Glimmer capture the song so perfectly? Like it was _meant_ to be sung by her?  
  
Like Catra had _written_ it for her?  
  
" ** _A thousand thoughts for a thousand nights, a million wrongs searching for a right... I thought you were what I needed..._** "  
  
Glimmer peeked open her eyes, instantly locking on to Catra's as a blush crept up from both girls' faces. She shut her eyes again to finish the verse, her heart skipping a beat.  
  
" ** _But all I needed was me..._** "  
  
_Silence_. No one said a word for what- to Glimmer- felt like a lifetime.  
  
"Woah..." Lonnie finally breathed softly, nodding as if processing what she just heard.  
  
"She's good, right? _Right_?" Adora beamed, wrapping their arms around their curvy friend as Glimmer blushed in embarrassment and averted her eyes to the floor.  
  
"I mean..." Catra cleared her throat, "I guess she fit the song..."  
  
"I _knew_ you'd agree! See, Glimmer? I _told_ you Catra wouldn't mind you singing her song, I know it's your favourite." Adora grinned.  
  
Glimmer froze in pure fear, paling until she was nearly white. Why the hell did Adora have to say that?  
  
Catra snickered, a smug grin on her face as she tilted her head curiously. "So, you like my songs? Didn't take you for the type to listen to such... Un-peppy music. You seem more bubblegum pop and country ditties to me."  
  
"Nope! Glimmer likes some pretty dark stuff! You should sing some of that one song you were writing back in college, you know the one? I really liked that one." Adora beamed, shaking Glimmer's shoulders hard enough for the girl's head to bob slightly.  
  
"N-No thanks, Adora! Please let me go now!" Glimmer said through grit teeth, wishing the ground would swallow her whole.  
  
Catra watched in amusement. Sparkles had a dark side, how ironic, considering the girl was a walking collage of pastels and glitter most of the time. At times she almost felt bad for the girl, was no one going to tell her she looked like she was ready for a first grader's birthday party and not the real world?  
  
The girl finally wriggled out of Adora's grip, the blonde still wearing the same dopey grin Catra loved and the pink haired girl sporting a look of pure embarrassment like she didn't want to be there. Catra felt the same way, she _also_ didn't want her there.  
  
"If you're serious about joining, there's one thing Adora probably didn't tell you." Mermista piped up, putting her phone down on the keys of her board to cross her arms at the pink haired girl.  
  
"What's that?" Glimmer questioned.  
  
"Oh, right. The shave." Lonnie grinned mischievously, running a hand over the fuzzy patch on the left side of her head where her head was shaved as she flipped her dreads dramatically.  
  
" _Shave my head_?! Adora Easton you did _not_ tell me I'd have to _shave_ my _fucking head_." Glimmer lamented, a mixture of horrified and enraged as she stared at the blonde with wide eyes.  
  
"E-Everyone did it! And you don't have to shave all of it! H-How about an undercut? Or a strip? _C'mon_ , Glim!" Adora whined, pulling a pair of puppy eyes.  
  
Catra wondered just where they learned that from in the first place, since Adora definitely didn't know how to do that in high school. Probably Arrows- er, Bow- Glimmer's boy toy and the band's biggest fan. Now _he_ knew how to use puppy eyes to his advantage.  
  
"You are _insane_ if you think I'm okay with this!" Glimmer cried out incredulously, throwing her hands up in exasperation.  
  
"What's wrong, Sparkles? Afraid mommy and daddy will ground you if you make your own decision?" Catra teased with a smirk.  
  
Glimmer turned on a heel and stomped right up to Catra, shoving a finger into her chest as she glared while staring into her eyes. "I can do whatever the hell I want." She growled through grit teeth. If there was one thing that could always get under Glimmer's skin, it would be talking about her like she was some sort of _princess_.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Prove it." Catra shrugged, not intimidated in the slightest by the pink abomination trying to "pull off" a purple leather jacket. _A purple_ _leather jacket_. Yeah, she didn't scare Catra.  
  
Glimmer held her gaze, growing more irked by the second as Catra's smirk stretched for miles. She resisted the urge to glance down at her freckles- why did Catra have to have one of her favourite features on girls?- and stared coldly into her amber and blue-green irises.  
  
"Adora?" Glimmer called without breaking eye contact.  
  
"Y-Yes?" Adora said, a bit uncomfortable by the tension between their two friends who were standing nearly chest to chest and seemingly trying to kill each other telepathically.  
  
"Get me a razor. I'm shaving my damn head."  



	2. Fresh

Glimmer huffed as she opened the bathroom door, dressed in some of Adora's clothes per the blonde's request.

"It's my fault you need an impromptu haircut, at least let me save you the trouble of dirtying up your clothes." They had reasoned.

So now here Glimmer sat, on the large queen sized bed of Adora's hotel room as she waited for her friend to come back. She was freshly showered, her hair still slightly damp as she squirmed impatiently.

If they were gonna cut her damn hair, do it already!

There was a knock on the door and Glimmer rose to open it, figuring Adora had just forgotten her room key and needed inside.

She was shocked but not very surprised to see Catra leaning against the wall opposing the door, leaning back against it as she smirked at Glimmer smugly, hands in her pockets and head cocked to the side.

"Ready for your big makeover?" The brunette snickered as Glimmer flushed in annoyance and rolled her eyes with a scoff.

"No. Adora _still_ isn't back yet with the razor." Glimmer replied flatly but stepped aside to let the girl in. At least having Catra around could help distract her from the dread of her future haircut.

"That sounds like Adora." Catra chuckled, shaking her head as she slowly brushed passed Glimmer to enter the room.

"Did they mention if they were gonna get snacks while they were out? I asked them for some sour cream and onion chips before they left but knowing Adora, they probably forgot." Catra said, sighing as she flopped onto the bed where Glimmer had just sat.

Glimmer shook her head with a hum. "Seriously, we asked for _three_ things! Have they always been this flighty or was it being on the football team in college that made them this way?"

Catra laughed- the sound causing a heating sensation to pool in Glimmer's chest through her upper arms for reasons Glimmer couldn't, and didn't want to, place- and sat up to look at her better.

"I think they were just born stupid. Though the constant blows to their big head definitely didn't help." Catra smiled cheekily at Glimmer, who giggled in response.

"You shouldn't call your friend stupid." Glimmer teased.

"I can call anyone whatever I want, Sparkles." Catra said, her tone mixing between defensive and playful.

"You shouldn't. It's rude." Glimmer said, still teasing but sounding more serious than her previous comment.

"Rude is my middle name, Glitter." Catra stood, taking a few steps towards the girl as her grin dropped and her tone became lower than before.

Glimmer fought a shudder to retort. "So your name is Catra _Rude_ Weaver? And I thought Catra was a shitty name in itself."

Catra growled, stepping closer now. Glimmer stepped back to keep distance between them, gasping slightly as her back hit the wall.

"Don't make fun of my fucking name, Princess." Catra spat through grit teeth.

" _I can call anyone whatever I want_ , Catra." Glimmer said with the same amount of venom in her voice, glaring slightly up at the girl as she used her own words against the slender girl.

In one swift motion Catra bunched Glimmer's shirt collar into her fists and slid her back upward against the wall until the brunette was the one looking up at her.

"Don't test me." Catra ordered, her tone and face void of any emotions.

Glimmer gulped at the sight. Not gonna lie, Catra was pretty damn intimidating when she tried to be, and it was _definitely_ working on Glimmer right about now.

"Hey Glim, I-" Adora paused in the doorway as both girls froze and cringed knowing Adora was most likely staring at them.

"Really, you two?!" The blonde groaned, dropping the shopping bag to the floor to rest their face in their hands. "I leave for _twenty minutes_ and you're _actively_ trying to kill each other?!"

Catra stepped back, letting Glimmer fall the few inches to the ground with a soft _thud._ "Sorry, Adora..." She muttered, embarrassed to apologise in front of anyone- _especially_ Glimmer.

"Sorry, 'Dora..." Glimmer echoed, smoothing down her shirt where Catra had grabbed it.

"It's fine, just- Sit down. Geez, and after I bought you more hair dye _and_ salt and vinegar chips." Adora sighed, tossing her a fun sized bag of the treat.

"Where's my chips?" Catra asked, glancing between Glimmer's bag and Adora in shock and offense.

"Right here, you brat." Adora giggled, aiming the bag for Catra's face as if they were about to throw a spiral.

Catra easily dodged as the bag slammed into the wall behind her. "Shit, Adora!" She yelped, picking up the bag that had burst it's airseal upon impact.

Adora just laughed at their friend's frantic attempts to check the floor for stray chips that could've flown out as Glimmer let out a small chuckle as well from the edge of the bed.

"Alright, so, how are we doing this?" The blonde asked, searching for an outlet for the electric razor as Glimmer tensed.

"U-Uh... Just... Don't shave my _whole_ head, okay Adora?" Glimmer answered nervously. She honestly hadn't put much though into what style she wanted, she trusted Adora would try to give her one she would like- or at least tolerate.

Catra snickered from the other side of the room, watching with _much_ interest as she crunched on her salty treat.

Glimmer shot her a "shut up" glare, gripping the sheets beside her in loose fists as Adora flipped the switch to turn it on.

"Hold still, Glim." Adora warned before lifting some of her hair and pressing the razor to the back of the pink haired girl's neck.

Glimmer gasped and shivered, but otherwise remained completely still as she squeezed her eyes shut. She could feel her hair falling off against her back and shoulders with each slow swipe of the razor as she kept repeating in her head how everything would be okay, how Adora wasn't going to mess up and make her bald.

Though that did little to stop her heart from racing with panic everytime Adora would murmur to themself between swipes.

"A-Are you done, yet?" Glimmer asked finally.

"Not quite. I was gonna trim what's left." Adora said as they turned the machine off.

"What?!" Glimmer shrieked.

"Relax, Sparkles. If Adora leaves it long it'll look even worse on you than it did before she started." Catra quirked a brow, smiling smugly as her teeth shone in the most aggravating way Glimmer thought was humanly possible.

"She uh- Without the wording, she's kinda right." Adora rubbed their neck sheepishly. "Catra? Can you help with this part, please? You know I can't cut straight lines..."

Oh fuck no. Now _Catra_ was cutting her hair? As in _Catra_ would have _scissors_ near her _head_?

Glimmer jumped from her seat on the bed. "I think I'll take my chances and leave it how it is!"

Catra laughed, tossing her head back with the action. "I'm not gonna cut you, Sparkles." She said. Maybe Catra was really capable of being nice after-

"Adora would kill me." She added.

Nope. Evil. Horrible. Through and through.

"Gee, thanks." Glimmer rolled her eyes sarcastically as she plopped back onto the bed ungracefully.

Catra snickered, grinning with a look in her eye that rendered Glimmer's fight it flight useless as she froze like a deer in headlights while the brunette picked up the scissors.

"I'll get a towel to brush the hair off of you when you're done." Adora smiled and waved before stepping out into the hall- most likely to ask for more towels even though there were some just in the room's closet. Classic Adora.

"Adora, wai-" Catra cut herself off as the for clicked shut, sighing as she shook her head. "They'd lose their head of it wasn't a part of their body." She said with an amused smile.

Glimmer couldn't hold back a giggle at her words, though she immediately tensed when Catra's attention returned to her.

"Now just stay still, Sparkles." Catra instructed as Glimmer squeezed her eyes shut and grit her teeth.

Glimmer tensed with each snip, occasionally feeling the cool metal against the crown of her head as she fought the urge to open her eyes to check for damages to her head and hair.

"Hey, I'm done." Catra commented, poking her cheek.

Wow, that was faster than Glimmer thought it would be. Less climactic, too.

Catra pulled out her phone and snapped a photo of the girl, who only noticed what was happening when the flash hit her face.

"H-Hey!" Glimmer yelped, eyes widening slightly as her cheeks turned a light shade of red. "You can't just take a picture of me without permission!"

"You're a rock star now, Sparkles. Get used to it." Catra smirked, turning her screen to show Glimmer the picture. "Some of my best work, if I do say so myself. Be grateful I didn't make you look like shit." She joked with a cocky grin.

Glimmer smiled and rolled her eyes, running a hand through the newly shortened hair as she looked at the photo.

She looked completely different than she was used to, with her natural raven hair now of full display and short tufts of pink hair atop her head being the only part that didn't feel like peach fuzz.

"Yeah, thanks." Glimmer said genuinely, startling Catra slightly as she paused momentarily in surprise.

"Don't mention it, Glitter." Catra mumbled, taking her phone back and shoving it into her pocket along with her hand.

Adora skipped back into the room with a fresh towel, grinning. "Oh! You're done! Looks great, Glim!"

Glimmer flushed slightly at the compliment, grinning as she ran a hand through her short hair. "You think so?" She asked shyly.

Catra rolled her eyes. Glimmer really needed to stop trying so hard to seem cute to Adora, didn't she know they-

 _Wait._ Did she just- Did she just think Glimmer was _cute_?

Glancing over again at the shorter woman Catra felt her face heat up with a creeping blush, quickly averting her eyes.

Nope. No. Vaulting that shit. Never thinking about this again. Glimmer was _not cute._

The pink haired girl laughed at something Adora said and Catra felt a shudder tear through her, shaking her head as she sighed deeply in inner frustration.

Glimmer is _not_ cute. Not at all.


	3. Road

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for everyone's favorite Thembo Adora to take the reigns this time around!
> 
> Also I tried to write it all from a consistent perspective but well quite frankly who even is that never met her-

Adora couldn't put their finger on it, but something was off with Catra. They had known the brunette for most of their life, yet they hadn't seen Catra so- _different_ \- in a long time.

Well, that was a lie. They _had_ , they just didn't like to think about that time in their relationship unless absolutely necessary.

The blonde was currently on their way to pick up Glimmer so the band could get to the tour bus where they'd be for the day driving to the next location on their tour- to where Glimmer would make her debut as the group's new singer- Mystacor.

The former linebacker was a bit startled as Catra roughly shoved past them, hands stuffed in her pockets and head down towards the ground with her shoulders hunched and tensed as she didn't even pause to mumble her usual "my bad."

Yeah, something was _definitely_ going on. Adora just needed to figure out what.

"Oh, Adora." Glimmer said, a look of slight surprise on her face as she clicked her door shut behind her, luggage already in hand. "What's up?"

"Uh, I was coming to walk with you to the bus." Adora answered, startled from her thoughts as they hadn't realised they had reached Glimmer's door yet.

Glimmer smiled, walking up to Adora as she laced her arm through theirs with a hum. "Thanks." She said softly.

Adora hummed quietly in reply, gnawing their lip between their teeth worriedly.

The shorter woman sighed softly, tugging their arm slightly so the blonde turned to look at her.

"What's wrong?" Glimmer asked, raising a brow.

"What?" Adora blinked in surprise.

"Adora, you're easier to read than Bow. I _know_ something's on your mind." She rolled her eyes with a knowing smirk.

Adora stayed silent for a moment, weighing their options. They _could_ ask Glimmer if anything seemed wrong with Catra to her, but would Glimmer even notice anything was off? The two didn't exactly- well, _get along_.

"Uh... H-Has Catra seemed, like- I dunno- _Off_ to you?" They finally said, shrugging to come off as casual.

Glimmer pursed her lips and hummed, scrunching her brows slightly in a way that made Adora have to hold back a sound of amusement. "Nope." She said, popping the 'p' for emphasis, before smiling up at the blonde. "It's _Catra_ , isn't she just being moody?"

Adora shook their head, closing their eyes as they sighed. "No. I don't think so." They said definitely.

Glimmer groaned, slouching against them as Adora chuckled softly while trying to support her weight.

"Let me guess. You want _me_ to ask her about it." Glimmer said, more telling than asking.

Adora rubbed their neck sheepishly and nodded. "Please?"

Glimmer sighed, a heavy pout on her lips as she glared up at the blonde in a not negative way. "You're lucky I love you, you jerk." She huffed.

Adora let out a breath of relief, grinning. "You're the best."

"I know." Glimmer smirked, bumping her hip against Adora's as they both let out a laugh before reaching the elevators.

"Thanks, Glim... You know, you and Catra have more in common than you think. I think you two would get along if you could have it a chance."

"Oh yeah? And what do we have in common, exactly?"

"You both used to have the hots for me, that's one." Adora winked.

"Shut up." Glimmer rolled her eyes through a grin, blushing slightly as she recalled the way she would follow her friend around like a little puppy back in her freshman year of college.

"Never." Adora chuckled, grinning back just as wide as the elevator doors opened.

The first thing Adora caught sight of was Catra; The brunette had caught her gaze and clicked her tongue before looking away with a scowl of frustration. What was going _on_ with her?

They shook their head and started guiding Glimmer towards the bus at the opposite end of the parking lot, staying mostly silent to sort their thoughts.

"Just... Don't be too direct. I can't guarantee that Catra will be willing to talk about it with someone she doesn't know very well." Adora whispered as the two loaded their luggage.

"Got it. Not direct, Catra doesn't trust me." Glimmer held a thumbs up with a cocky grin as Adora rolled their eyes.

"That's not what I meant and you know it." They glared at the woman playfully. "She just... Has some problems I'm not allowed to talk about. Don't blame her."

Glimmer seemed to soften for a moment before shrugging and looking away. "Whatever. I'll talk to her, okay? But you owe me."

"Anything." Adora grinned, skipping after her onto the bus.

"You're growing more and more late every stop, Adora." The Rebellion's manager, Hordak, said from the driver's seat. The man claimed it was more 'efficient' if he drove the bus rather than hire a driver and follow the band in his Prius.

"Sorry, Hordak." Adora mumbled, slumping into a seat near the middle of the bus.

It was a long, bulky vehicle that without the spray-painted band logo would surely be a total eye sore to any passing cars; The interior was nice, Adora thought, with four fold-down beds for the members and a couple of booth seats to sit at during the drive. They spent most nights in hotels, anyway, so luxuries weren't really necessary in the first place.

Glimmer slid into the booth opposite them, arms resting on the table as she stared out the window at the early morning sunrise.

"Does everyone have absolutely everything they need? I don't want-"

"Hordak! That hotel had tiny shampoo!" Hordak's girlfriend- and the band's only technical staff- Entrapta called, cutting the man off as her eyes seemingly sparkled while she held up an assortment of tiny shampoos and conditioners.

"Y-Yes, very nice Entrapta." Hordak cleared his throat while the girl beamed and bounced in place.

The two then stepped away from the band to privatize their conversation while Lonnie snickered and made a whipping motion and sound effect behind the manager's back.

Mermista looked slightly amused- which for Mermista, meant _very_ amused- and Adora stifled a giggle into their hand.

"Huh?" Glimmer snapped back to attention at the laughter, wondering anxiously if it was about her.

Adora simply smiled and shook their head, as if reading Glimmer's thoughts. Glimmer wouldn't be surprised if they could, honestly, Adora was just interesting like that.

Catra was the last onto the bus, grumbling about losing her pack of picks even though Adora _knew_ she didn't use picks all that often and could easily buy new ones in Mystacor before their show.

"We will be on the road for approximately," Hordak paused, pinching the side of his electronic watch as it let out a _ping_ sound, "Six hours. Make yourselves comfortable, there will be no stops until we reach our destination."

The man then turned to sit once more in the driver's seat as Entrapta sat in the seat closest to talk to him during the drive.

"Alright! Time for another _adven-cha!_ " Sea Hawk announced once the bus pulled out of the lot, standing in the booth with one foot on the table as he pointed off at nothing.

Mermista groaned and hid her face in her hands while Lonnie tugged his boot back so quickly that Sea Hawk landed on his bottom beside her with an 'oof'.

Adora glanced past the table of dorks to see Catra sitting by herself at one near the back of the bus, earphones in as she glared out the window. The brunette occasionally glanced their way with a scowl, though for some reason it didn't seem like she was looking at them.

What was Catra looking at? The only other person near them was Glimmer.

_Oh._

She's looking at Glimmer. The question now is _why_? Doesn't Catra- No matter how much it bothers the blonde- _hate_ Glimmer?

Was it because she was sitting with Adora? Did Catra want to sit with them instead? That didn't make sense, Catra would just ask if it were that simple. Right?

Adora worried her lip between her teeth, trying to process this before glancing up at Glimmer. The girl was glancing behind them, though she quickly flushed and looked away from whatever she was looking at.

The blonde thought that was a bit weird. The only thing behind them was Catra, but why would Glimmer-

Wait. Something's not clicking here. Stupid jock brain!

Adora tensed at this new information, trying to sort through it to find the meaning in it. If this were a cartoon, they'd surly have steam coming from their ears from how hard they were thinking.

"You're making that face." Glimmer giggled, poking the crease between the blonde's brows. "Why?"

"I have no idea what you're taking about." Adora lied. Of _course_ she knew all about The Face, both Glimmer and Bow loved to tease her for it back when they met during Adora's junior year at Brightmoon University, and they'd done it ever since.

"Adora." Gimme deadpanned, raising a brow with a curious, cheeky grin.

The blonde sighed. "It's not important. You couldn't help me with it, anyway." They smiled apologetically with a shrug as Glimmer nodded in agreement.

"Well, if you need a distraction, maybe you could help me with the set list for this show? Since I arrived kinda last minute I didn't get to practice with you guys." Glimmer suggested, pulling out her phone as she clicked on a picture of the songs they'd have to do.

"Right, yeah. So this new local band from Mystacor is gonna open for us after playing two songs from their new album before we go on, which will give you some time to warm up in case you need a lyrics refresher. We're opening with **Conflicted** , then it's gonna be **Cataclysm** and **Despair**. There's gonna be a ten minute intermission- which basically means Catra and Lonnie taking turns trying to out-riff each other while the audience gets more snacks or something- and we'll be closing with **Solitude** and **Freedom**." Adora explained.

The chubby woman tensed and sucked in a quick breath, probably at the knowledge that her favorite song- probably ever- would be played last. She quickly tried to cover it, even though Adora _clearly_ saw it, by nodding along. "Yeah, sure. Okay."

"They're all Catra's songs, you know. Maybe you could talk to her about that one you're working on right now, ask her for input? How does it go again?" Adora grinned.

Maybe if Catra heard Glimmer's song, it could spark a conversation between them and Glimmer could tell Adora what's bothering Catra without them having to ask! Such a genius, big brain work right there.

Glimmer blushed all the way to the tips of her ears, eyes widening slightly at the idea of singing- _randomly_ \- in the middle of the bus. " _N-Now_?!" She whisper-screamed.

Adora nodded eagerly, their grin only stretching further. "Just a few bars. A verse? Four lines!" She bartered.

Glimmer glanced around with a sigh before leaning closer across the table so she wouldn't have to sing very loud. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, trying to psyche herself up as she reminded herself that as a 'rockstar', as Catra had put it, she'd have to get used to singing around people and get used to it fast.

" _ **Expectations towering... Ignorant to how I feel... Trapped inside and cowering... The me you see just isn't real...**_ "

Adora glanced behind themself as their friend sang, surpressing a grin when they noticed that Catra had tried to casually take out one of her earbuds to listen, pointedly avoiding looking at the pair as her eyes shifted around quickly at seemingly everything else in the bus at once.

" _ **Your iron grip is a familiar warmth... But push it away, push it away... Can't live for myself if you're always by my side.. I can't stay, no I can't stay...**_ "

Glimmer's eyes slowly peaked open as she gasped and jumped back in her seat, blushing deeply as she turned to stare out the window.

Adora heard a similar sound from behind them as they hid a smirk.

Those two really were _so_ much alike.


	4. Chat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: Panic attack

Glimmer took a few deep breaths, trying to ignore the cheering, screaming crowd on the other side of the curtain.

The local talent- some band called Dark Sorcery- was finishing up their set any minute now to let The Rebellion on, and after their ten minute set Glimmer _still_ didn't feel as ready as she should.

She was currently holed up in the backstage bathroom, trying her best not to have a panic attack and ruin her eyeliner.

"Hey, Sparkles. Adora sent me to check on you or whatever while they get their hair ready. You ready to go or what?" Catra's voice nearly startled a scream out of the girl as she covered her mouth and willed the welling tears back from her eyes.

"Y-Y-Yeah... F-Five minutes." Glimmer said, cursing herself for how shaky and strained her voice sounded.

"Uh," Catra paused, clearing her throat before leaning closer to the door, "Are you uh, okay in there?"

Glimmer whimpered and rapidly shook her head before realising Catra couldn't see. "N-No..." She admitted, feeling humiliated as she said it aloud.

Glimmer had _asked_ for this, _dreamed_ of it, so why was she so... So _scared_?

Catra sighed, clicking her tongue as she tried to jiggle the knob.

"Let me in."

"What?" Glimmer asked, surprised by Catra's low tone.

"Sparkles, I know a fucking panic attack when I hear one. Let me in or I'll break the damn door down." Catra huffed, jiggling it again more feverishly this time.

Glimmer slowly reached over, flipping the lock before pulling her knees to her chest as she sat beneath the bathroom's higher sink.

Catra quickly rushed in, glancing around for a moment before closing and locking the door.

She stood for a few minutes just staring at Glimmer, lips pursed as her hands drummed against her thighs with her thumbs hooked through the pockets of her maroon leather pants.

"Shit, I should've called for Adora. I-I have no fucking clue how to like, comfort people." Catra said, her voice quick and panicky as she reached up to run a hand through her shave and scratch at it impulsively.

Glimmer's eyes widened, taken aback. Catra wanted to _comfort_ her? _Why_?

"I... You... You want to... C-Comfort me..?" Glimmer asked through slow, shallow breaths, shaking slightly as tears threatened to spill.

"Fuck!" Catra dropped to her knees in front of the girl, hesitantly reaching out with a hand with- Glimmer wasn't sure if she was seeing things- _worried_ eyes. "I... Shit. Adora usually helps me through these... Okay, uh..."

Glimmer hiccupped, a few tears escaping her eyes as she quickly hid her face in her hands. Why was Catra here? Didn't she hate Glimmer? Didn't Glimmer hate her?

She paused at the thought. _Did_ she hate Catra? Sure, the brunette was the most annoying person she'd probably ever met, but was it really anything more than that? A simple feeling of annoyance?

Glancing up at Catra, Glimmer shuddered and had to choke back a sob. Here she was, sitting on a dirty floor of a public bathroom, shivering and crying like a kicked puppy, and the only person there with her was someone who couldn't stand her.

"J-Just go.. A-Adora can sing for me.." Glimmer mumbled through trembling lips, averting her gaze to the ground in shame.

Her breath hitched as Catra grabbed her chin, forcing their eyes to meet. "You're fucking insane if you think I'm letting Adora's terrible pipes butcher my songs."

Glimmer couldn't help but let out a weak laugh, the ghost of a smile hinting on her face.

"C'mon, Sparkles. Breathe with me. In for four, hold for three, out for five. Got it? C'mon, try it with me." Catra said calmly, holding Glimmer's gaze as she guided her through the process.

The brunette's hand dropped after the first few and Glimmer found the spot grow ice cold the moment she lost Catra's warmth. She continued breathing slowly and steadily until her shaking stopped and her tears stopped flowing so rapidly.

They stared at each other of a moment before Catra shifted to stand. Glimmer felt a rush of adrenaline course through her at the thought of Catra leaving, throwing her arms around Catra's neck to keep her there.

The brunette tensed, holding her breath as Glimmer felt her pulse quicken against her.

"Please... I-I won't tell anyone, so please... Just for a second..." The shorter woman whispered, clutching onto Catra like a lifeline.

Catra gulped, shakily lifting her arms to loosely wrap around Glimmer's waist. Normally, any physical contact without permission would result in a kick to the teeth, but with Glimmer? Catra couldn't find it in herself to be upset, not after witnessing the girl's breakdown that reminded her so much of her own. How could she do that to another person in their moment of need?

"O-Okay, Sparkles..." Catra whispered, holding Glimmer lightly like she were the most fragile thing in the world.

Glimmer- in her normal state- would have gone off on Catra for treating her so carefully, like she were something that could break and crumple into a million pieces; Would have punched Catra right in her usually-smug face.

But Catra _wasn't_ being smug. She wasn't even teasing her. She was just _here_ , holding Glimmer as she cried and probably ruining her red denim jacket.

A word came to Glimmer's mind at the revelation: Safe. Catra was trying to make her feel _safe._

She hugged Catra a bit tighter, sighing as she felt Catra tighten her hold carefully in turn.

"I-If anyone finds out about this.." Catra trailed off. Glimmer smiled and shook her head.

"I know." She mumbled, closing her eyes. "Thank you, Catra. This... Really means a lot to me." She admitted.

Catra tensed a moment against her before hesitantly relaxing into the embrace. "Don't mention it, Sparkles. Can't have my new singer callin' it quits before her first show, right?"

Glimmer's heart fluttered. _'My singer'_ , Catra had called Glimmer _hers._ Did she hear how it sounded? Did she mean it in the way Glimmer hoped she did?

 _Wait_.

In what way _did_ Glimmer hope she meant it?

A heavy blush worked its way onto the chubby woman's cheeks, suddenly hyper aware of every point of contact Catra made with her. Her back felt red-hot from her arms, her shoulder housing Catra's chin tingling and her entire front half feeling ready to bust into flames being pressed so closely to Catra's.

Catra seemed perfectly calm, or as calm as she could be in the situation. How was Glimmer the only one freaking out over this? Don't tell me she-

Oh shit. She likes Catra. Oh, fuck.

How long?! Was it new, from watching how kindly Catra was treating her? Or did it stem further back than that? All of the bickering and eye avoidances made more sense now, dammit.

A memory flashed before her mind, back to her college days. Her first meeting with Catra before being introduced to "The Horde" three years ago.

_Glimmer paced outside of Adora's hospital room, waiting for the doctor to come out with the results of her xrays. Glimmer scolded herself, why did she_ _have to distract them? Now Adora could be really badly hurt and it was all her fault._

_Suddenly a girl Glimmer had only seen around campus a couple of times stomped over to her, looking absolutely livid as she glared at her._

_"What the fuck did you do?!" She shouted, pinning Glimmer to the wall by her shoulders as Glimmer cried out in pain and surprise._

_"I-I didn't mean to! T-They looked my way right as that guy dove towards them! I-I didn't have time to warn them!" Glimmer said, her voice trembling. Who was this-_ incredibly _strong- woman?_

_"Maybe if you'd stop flirting with my best friend long enough to let them breathe, Adora wouldn't have gotten hurt in the first place!" The brunette said, shoving Glimmer against the wall before turning to the door to knock rapidly._

_"Ma'am, like I told your friend there, the patient isn't ready for-"_

_"I'm her foster sister. Let me the hell in or I'll massacre you and every staff member in this wing." She growled, somehow managing to tower over the doctor who was clearly taller than her._

_The doctor nervously cleared his throat. "R-Right, my mistake ma'am. N-No need for violence." He said timidly, stepping aside as the girl pushed past him quickly to make her way to Adora's bedside._

_Adora didn't mention having a foster sister. She didn't even mention being a foster kid. How much had Adora been keeping from her while Glimmer told Adora everything?_

_She peeked through the door's window to see the brunette hugging Adora close, her shoulders shaking like she were crying into their chest. Adora simply smiled sadly and pulled her face back, kissing her forehead as she said something Glimmer couldn't make out._

_Glimmer felt her heart break for both of them. Thanks to her stupid mistake, she not only hurt Adora, but this stranger as well. A stranger Adora clearly cared about. Double zinger._

_As she turned to leave, she couldn't shake the image of the brunette from her mind. So strong, so powerful, so exciting. Who was she?_

Catra. She was Catra. Stars, had Glimmer really liked her that long? How had she never noticed before now?

"Catra..." She blurted before she could stop herself.

Catra pulled back as Glimmer instantly got lost in her amber and blue-green irises. Neither girl said anything for a few moments that seemed to stretch for infinity, simply trying to figure each other out through stare alone.

Glimmer's eyes widened a fracture as Catra began leaning in at a snail's pace, her head tilting ever-so-slightly to the side.

Was this really happening? Was Glimmer ready for this? Fuck no she wasn't ready for this, yet here it was about to happen!

"I-"

"Catra? You in here? Did you find Glimmer? We're on in five!" Lonnie called through the door as Catra tensed.

The brunette's eyes widened, a blush coating her face as she retracted her arms from around Glimmer to scramble back from her.

"Y-Yeah! I found her, she's fine! I'll be out in a second!" She called to the door, eyes still locked on the woman before her.

Glimmer felt a bit hurt by how quickly Catra had pulled away. Did that embrace mean _nothing_ to her?

She felt her heart drop. It probably _did_ mean nothing to Catra, she was just doing a favor to a fellow bandmate. That's all it was to her.

"Okay, hurry up! I'm gonna go out and play the crowd for a second." Lonnie called as both girls silently waited for the sound of her sneakers to fade.

Catra sighed in relief, standing as she held out a hand for Glimmer to take, smiling slightly. "Ready to blow people's minds, Sparkles?" She asked challengingly.

Glimmer slowly took her hand, rising to her feet as she gazed up into Catra's eyes. "Ready." She said.

 _Just keep your eyes on me, Catra._ She added with her gaze.

 _Anytime, Sparkles._ Catra seemed to answer, letting go to turn to the door.

Glimmer grinned, her heart fluttering. She could do this, she was going to bring the house down for her band, for herself, and- most of all- for Catra.

Glimmer was going to prove that she belonged in the band, that she _deserved_ to play the songs that felt like Catra was speaking directly to her.

She could do this.


	5. Drunk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: alcohol
> 
> It's gonna be a long one, gays-

The show was a hit. Beyond a hit, it was _incredible_.

Glimmer had never felt such a rush before in her life, and even _Mermista_ seemed happy after the band loaded the equipment back into the bus.

The whole way to the hotel they were cheering and laughing together, Catra even gave Adora a hug in front of others- a rare thing for the brunette to do, even around her bandmates.

The bassist was feeling adrenaline coursing through her from the crowd as they parked for the night in the hotel parking lot, jittery with glee at how successful the show had been.

"Hey!" She called, making her fellow members pause to look at her as they climbed off of the bus. "Who wants to get drinks? Let's fucking party!"

Glimmer, Sea Hawk and Lonnie instantly cheered their agreement while Mermista simply groaned and Adora looked nervous and hesitant as always when clubbing was involved.

"Uh, Catra? Are you sure we should do that? We have to be on the road the day after tomorrow..." Adora rubbed their neck, lips pursed as they looked up at their friend still on the bus from their place on the asphalt.

Catra rolled her eyes, grinning a Cheshire grin. "C'mon, 'Dora! Just a few drinks! I'll get an uber and you don't even _have_ to drink!" She begged.

"Adora, pleeease?" Glimmer whined, latching onto the blonde's arm as she used her body weight to tug on it a few times.

Adora's face contorted a bit as they hummed through their nose, clearly trying not to give in and visibly failing to do so.

"Fine." They sighed in a huff, a thin pout pursing on their lips.

"Hell yeah!" Catra cheered. "So who's all in?"

"Hordak and I are gonna pass, I want to see what channels this hotel offers and see if I can hack our favorites in if they aren't provided." Entrapta waved, tugging her taller boyfriend along as he looked unamused at best.

"Well, I guess someone has to make sure we get home safe..." Adora sighed, raising their hand.

"I say we find a club with a karaoke bar!" Sea Hawk announced.

"Babe, please? Do we _have_ to go?" Mermista whined, rolling her eyes.

"C'mon, Mermista! Let's do it! What's stopping you?" Lonnie grinned, slinging an arm around the navy blue haired girl's shoulders.

Mermista squirmed, her face scrunching as she freed herself from the hold. "My love for sobriety." She deadpanned.

"Don't be such a wuss! Mer-mis-ta! Mer-mis-ta! Mer-mis-ta!" Catra chanted as soon everyone else- other than Adora- began to join in.

Mermista groaned loudly, crossing her arms as she threw her head back dramatically. "This is peer pressure." She grumbled.

"Hell yeah, Mermista's in!" Lonnie laughed, pumping her fist in the air triumphantly.

Catra laughed as she pulled up her uber app, finding the nearest driver with a car big enough for them before typing in their location.

"Alright, guys! Car will be here in five, then Adora's in charge and we're responsibity free!" Catra grinned, her pupils blown wide like a kitten with catnip.

Glimmer giggled slightly at the expression, a light blush on her cheeks as she quickly averted her gaze when Catra caught it.

Catra squinted. That was weird. Was Sparkles acting off because of what happened before the show? She really hoped not, that could damage her 'tough girl' reputation if anyone found out.

She brushed it off and waited with the others for the car, everyone cheering and already discussing what they planned to do once they reached the club.

"Okay, everyone. I'm not drinking tonight, so no one try to slip me anything alcoholic like last time." Adora warned as they all climbed into the uber.

Mermista and Lonnie shared a smirk that Catra quickly caught with a glare, cutting off their plans to do just that to the blonde.

The ride there was near silent as they were all crammed together like sardines with a man they didn't know very well at the wheel, finally sighing collectively in relief as they pulled up to the club.

"Catra, I need a favor." Adora asked, tugging the girl aside as the others made their way to the line to be let in.

"What?" Catra asked shortly, feeling antsy to get inside.

"I need you to watch Glimmer for me." Adora begged quickly, squinting as they braced for her reaction.

"What? Why?" Catra asked. Why should Catra have to take care of a grown woman on her night off?

"She's a lightweight, and she's fiesty when she's drunk. I can't control her! She gets too strong for me." The blonde mumbled, rubbing their neck in embarrassment.

"'Dora. You played football for _ten years_ of your life. What do you mean she's too strong for you?" The brunette asked in disbelief. There's no way _Sparkles_ could automatically take down a tank like Adora with just a little booze.

"Well, she's also flirty when she's drunk."

Okay, that made more sense.

"Let me guess, you need me to play big-bad-boyfriend Catra, like I did for you back in college?" Catra smirked as Adora reddened and nodded timidly.

"K-Kind of..?"

"And what's in it for me?"

"I'll finally let you repaint the apartment however you want." Adora pleaded, clasping their hands in front of them.

Well, Catra _had_ been complaining about the ugly off-white walls of their apartment for a while.

"Deal." Catra sighed, crossing her arms as her head bobbed repetitively in a lazy nod.

Adora grinned and pulled her in for a quick hug before rushing to find their friends, who had already filed into the drinking environment.

Catra groaned, running a hand through her shave to scratch it a bit. At least Glimmer shouldn't be too hard to track down, with her pink hair and blinding fashion.

She quickly spotted the shorter woman over by the bar, downing a shot with Sea Hawk as the man laughed and cheered when they finished.

Glimmer was already swaying slightly, cursing her short stature and genetics for making her so useless with the substance involved in some of her favourite beverages.

Catra sauntered over, hands in her pockets as she stood a bit away from the two and ordered herself a cosmopolitan. Girly drinks be damned, a good drink is a good drink no matter what it looks like.

She watched Sea Hawk walk away as Glimmer called for a sea breeze, her words already louder and less articulate as usual. Catra suppressed a chuckle, this girl really _was_ a lightweight, wasn't she?

"Catra!" Glimmer gasped, cheeks dusted pink as she grinned at the startled girl.

"Yeah?" Catra humored once she had calmed down from the sudden shout of her name from so close beside her.

"Dance with me." Glimmer said, clinging to her arm.

"No." Catra muttered, taking a sip as she tried to brush the girl off.

Clingy drunk.

"But you have to!" Glimmer whined, tearing up almost instantly as she sniffed and clung tighter.

Catra's eyes widened. Shit, she did _not_ want to deal with a crying Glimmer twice in one day.

Okay, clingy, _emotional_ drunk. Noted.

"Ugh, fine!" Catra relented, slamming her plastic cup onto the counter with a huff. "J-Just don't cry!"

Glimmer's grin returned, blinking the tears back as she giggled. "Awesome! C'mon, I fucking _looove_ this song!"

Catra groaned as the chubby woman lead her into the crowd of sweaty, clumsy drunks to dance to some cheesy, top 40s pop song.

"Don't be like that!" Glimmer poked her cheek. "Dance!"

Catra raised a brow with a lackluster expression, watching as Glimmer swayed her hips a bit offbeat to the song's tempo and bounced on her heels in place while moving her arms around within her own personal space.

She sighed in defeat and shrugged to herself before trying to copy the girl's movements to some degree, swaying slightly and tapping her foot as she nodded to the beat of the drums.

Glimmer laughed, grinning widely as she looked at Catra. Catra couldn't help but smile back, letting out an amused snort as she thought of how ridiculous they must look. Then again, _everyone_ there looked ridiculous.

Suddenly a guy approached Glimmer from behind, tapping her shoulder as the giddy girl twirled to face him without breaking from her little dance.

"Hey, cutie." He smirked. "Wanna dance with me for a bit? I can last a few songs."

Catra cringed, her movements stopping as she stiffened and waited for Glimmer's reaction. If she wanted this, Catra wouldn't intervene. She'd only step in if the advance went unwanted.

"I'm already dancing with someone, thank you!" Glimmer grinned, turning to return her attention to Catra.

The man grabbed Glimmer's shoulder as the girl's eyes widened slightly. "I think you'd rather dance with me."

Catra felt something stir within her at the sight. How fucking _dare_ he touch her! She _clearly_ said 'no' the first time!

"Hey, _pal_." Catra said, grabbing his wrist to roughly pull it off of Glimmer. "She said 'no thanks'."

"Oh, are you her friend? Well, I can dance with both of you pretty girls if you want." He chuckled, the sound making Catra's blood boil with rage.

"She's with me, asshole! Back the fuck off!" Catra growled, snaking an arm around Glimmer's waist as she pulled the shorter woman into her chest to stare the guy down.

"Woah, _together_? That's hot-"

Catra blinked in surprise to see Glimmer panting slightly, fist trembling.

She glanced between the hand and the man's face as realisation set in.

Glimmer just _punched his face._ Damn, Sparkles.

Catra smirked, a sense of pride welling inside of her. "Hey, let's get you out of here, okay?" She said softly as the girl trembled slightly in her arms.

"What the hell?!" The man shouted, clutching his nose with squinted, teary eyes as his entire face turned bright red.

"I warned you. My girl's fiesty." Catra joked, earning a weak giggle from Glimmer as the girl buried her face into Catra's shoulder.

Catra just called her _hers,_ for the _second_ time that day! She must be dreaming.

"Ugh, whatever. Screw you." The man shouted, flipping them off before turning to run.

Probably to cry like a little bitch, Catra thought in amusement.

"Hey, you okay?" She asked, placing her hands on Glimmer's shoulders. The girl had a distant look on her face as she shrugged Catra off and stumbled towards the bar.

"Sparkles-" Catra cut herself off, following silently in case she needed help again.

"I don't need you to fight my battles for me." Glimmer said, her voice sounding miles off as she stared at the drink in front of her.

Catra winced as she watched the girl down it all at once, slamming it onto the counter as she gestured for another round.

"I wasn't trying to-"

"But you did." Glimmer cut her off, repeating the process again as her eyes hardened into a glare down at the counter.

"I was just-"

"Just what?! Helping _poor_ , _defenseless_ Glimmer fight off some _big bad monster_?" Glimmer asked, sounding both hurt and sarcastic as her words spat with venom.

Catra tensed. _Monster._ Catra _really_ hated that word.

"Calm down, Sparkles! I was just trying to help!" Catra said defensively.

"Help? Why do _you_ even care? You hate me, right? I know you do, so just say it! _Say it_!"

"I fucking hate you." Catra growled lowly, bunching Glimmer's shirt collar in her hands as she held her face close and glared into her eyes while pressing the woman's back against the bar.

Glimmer matched her stare in intensity, letting out a huff of anger as she tried to shove the girl away.

Catra stumbled but didn't release her hold. Adora wasn't kidding when they said drunk Glimmer was strong, she nearly fell on her ass.

"Fuck you." Glimmer whimpered, tearing up as she tried desperately to hold her cold stare.

Catra sighed, closing her eyes as she let go of the girl.

"C'mon." Catra took her by the arm, fishing her phone from her pocket.

"W-Where are we going?" Glimmer asked in a timid voice.

"I'm taking you back to the hotel. You've had enough to drink and I don't want Adora to blame me if you go ape shit and beat me to a pulp." Catra replied half jokingly as she sent a quick text to the blonde before contacting the uber from earlier.

Glimmer grumbled in protest but put up no resistance as Catra tugged her towards the entrance and out to the curb.

"I don't need help." Glimmer pouted, crossing her arms.

Catra chuckled and shook her head with a slight smirk. "I didn't say you did."

"Well then stop helping me."

"I'm not helping you. I'm taking an uber back and you're riding with me. It's cost efficient."

"You suck."

"Thanks."

A silence passed between them as the two stood awkwardly waiting for the car to arrive.

"I could've handled that guy myself." Glimmer finally said after some time had passed.

"Yeah, I don't doubt that." Catra chuckled, grinning slightly as she recalled the man's face when Glimmer punched him.

"Good." Glimmer huffed in an adorable pout.

Snap out of it, Catra. Sparkles is _not_ cute.

The car pulled up as Catra helped Glimmer get settled in, sitting beside her as she glanced out the window.

Glimmer took Catra's hand in her own, fiddling with her fingers as her head swayed slightly with the motions of the car, furrowing her brows in focus at what she was doing.

Catra chuckled at the girl's behavior, smirking as she let Glimmer fiddle away with her fingers. It was nice seeing Glimmer act like a little kid- a _not_ _annoying_ little kid, that is.

They soon arrived back at the hotel as Catra recieved a thumbs up text from Adora. Gee, thanks.

"Okay, c'mon." Catra sighed, tugging Glimmer after her as the girl grumbled and dragged her feet.

"But I'm not tired." She whined.

"Then don't go to bed. I'm not your mom." Catra huffed, wrapping her arm around Glimmer's waist to tug her along.

"Oh." Glimmer blinked, resting her head on Catra's shoulder as they entered the elevator.

Catra felt her pulse spike at the contact, blushing from- as she told herself- strictly the alcohol she had earlier.

She tried to ignore it, walking Glimmer to her room. "Hand me your room key."

"It's in my pocket." Glimmer mumbled.

"What? Just hand it to me!" Catra blushed a bit deeper, knowing what Glimmer was trying to ask her for.

"Just grab it already." Glimmer whined, burying her face into Catra's shoulder as she hugged her arm tightly.

Catra groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose as she exhaled deeply. She quickly reached into Glimmer's front jean pocket, grabbing the key card out with a huff of frustration as the girl giggled at her annoyance.

"You're an annoying drunk." Catra said in a monotone voice as she opened the door.

Glimmer pouted, her cheeks puffing out in a childish way that Catra had to bite back a laugh at the sight of. "Am not."

"Sure, Sparkles."

Catra lead her to the bed, sitting Glimmer down before turning to leave.

"Wait!"

The brunette flinched, turning around slowly again to face her.

"Don't go..." Glimmer sniffed, tears in her wide eyes as she stared at Catra with trembling lips.

Catra sighed, plopping down on the corner of the mattress facing slightly away from the girl.

"Why do you hate me, Catra?" The girl asked, crawling closer to sit behind the girl.

Catra tensed, the question taking her a bit by surprise.

"It... I...." Catra began, though she couldn't seem to voice the root of her distress towards the girl.

Thinking now, did she still hold those feelings of resentment for the girl at all? Or was she just shifting blame onto someone involved in the situation?

Shit. Her therapist would be so proud of her for that thought.

She glanced at Glimmer and bit her lip, unsure how to respond to the girl now. Before today, the words would have come easily. But now?

"Well?" Glimmer frowned, her brow creasing slightly as she broke Catra from her train of thought.

"I-I don't know." Catra blurted, wincing at how stupid that must have sounded.

"You don't even know why you can't stand me?" Glimmer whimpered, a sob pushing past her lips as a few tears escaped her eyes.

Catra's hand surged forward, having the sudden urge to just- _wipe her tears away._

She blushed, blinking in surprise as her hand froze halfway.

Glimmer noticed, their eyes locking as the girl cried quietly while looking at her in confusion. She grabbed Catra's wrist gently and tugged it the rest of the way, resting her hand over the brunette's against her cheek.

Catra tensed yet made no moves to pull away. Why couldn't she pull away? Was it because Glimmer was crying? Did she feel bad for the girl? Or was there something more there?

Her heart skipped a beat at the thought. _Was_ there something more? Ugh, this is why she didn't do _feelings._

"Before the show..." Glimmer's voice yet again broke Catra from a spiral, "In the bathroom... Why didn't you kiss me?" She asked with a hiccup, her eyes pleadingly searching Catra's for an answer.

Catra's eyes widened in shock, sucking in a tight breath as her heart began hammering against her ribcage as though it were trying to escape. Catra half wished it would, maybe it would take all of these emotions with it.

"Kiss you..?" Catra echoed breathlessly.

Glimmer frowned, another sob tearing through her as she leaned closer. "Yes. We almost kissed, and then you pulled back. Why?" She asked stubbornly.

Catra tried to come up with a reason, though for some reason, she couldn't find one. Why _did_ she pull away? It's not like Glimmer didn't look kissable.

She burned deeper at the thought.

Glimmer seemed to notice, her eyes flickering from Catra's lips to her eyes so quickly that if Catra weren't already staring at the girl- she would have missed entirely.

Catra bit her lip and the woman whimpered, a look of desperation worming its way into her gaze as she looked at Catra in silent permission.

Catra sighed shakily, leaning in slowly as she let her eyes close.

She heard Glimmer gasp and the next thing she knew-

Fireworks. An explosion of everything right in the world all at once, everything good that could possibly exist belonged in Glimmer's lips.

The brunette cupped her cheeks, finding herself pulling Sparkles closer as the shorter woman let out a happy hum against her lips and complied, lacing her hands behind Catra's head to cradle it gently and hold her firmly in place. Not that either girl was willing to pull away anytime soon, anyway.

They chased each other's lips with teeth and tongue, letting out soft hums and sighs between momentary pauses to breathe or adjust. Both were in bliss, heads spinning from intoxication and desire as they kissed like their lives depended on it.

They eventually had to part, panting lightly as they gazed at one another. Ruffled hair, swollen lips, flushed cheeks, and glazed over eyes greeted them as they scanned each other's face.

"Woah..." Catra said breathlessly, reaching a trembling hand up to push the hair from her face.

"Yeah..." Glimmer nodded slightly, swallowing dryly between quick breaths.

A silence passed and seemed to stretch on forever until the sound of Catra's ringtone startled both girls out of their trance.

"H-Hello?" Catra said, her voice cracking slightly as she picked up the phone.

" _Catra? Hey! Are you with Glimmer? I stopped by your room but you weren't there. I'm getting Lonnie to her room on the floor below right now."_ Adora's voice came through the other end, along with a whining, mumbling Lonnie most likely leaning against them.

"Glimmer? No, I'm not with Glimmer." Catra blurted, cringing at the look of pain that crossed Glimmer's face at her words.

" _Oh, well, wherever you are... You should come back soon. We have practice planned tomorrow so you can help me with the chords to the song Lonnie wrote, remember? You said you would since you got your part on the fjrst try._ "

"Yeah, sure. I'll uh- I'll head back soon. Night!" Catra said.

" _Okay, ni-_ " Catra quickly pressed the end call button, sighing in relief.

"What the hell was that?" Glimmer asked, her voice full of hurt.

"I-I'm sorry, I panicked!" Catra said quickly.

"Sure. You panicked." Glimmer looked away, crossing her arms. She didn't sound like she believed it.

"Sparkles, I'm sorry." Catra pleaded, reaching out towards her.

Glimmer instantly recoiled at her touch, scooting away with a huff. "I think you should leave."

"But-"

"You just had to get me to my room. I'm here. Your job is done. So leave."

"Glimmer-"

" _Catra._ " Glimmer growled lowly, the tone startling Catra enough to make her gasp. "Get. Out."

Catra opened her mouth to reply, only to sigh and nod weakly. She stood, rubbing her arm as she slowly crossed the room to the door.

She spared a glance back at Glimmer as she opened the door to see the girl fighting back tears, her face red with the effort she was using to seem tough.

The brunette exited the room, closing the door quietly behind her as she dragged her feet to her room, plopping onto the bed the moment she arrived.

"I'm such an _idiot..._ " Catra sighed in a whisper, burying her face into her pillow as she curled into a ball. The image of Glimmer's expression when she lied to Adora stuck on a constant loop in her mind until her brain finally turned off for her to sleep.

Glimmer clutched a pillow to her chest in her room down the hall, her breathing shaky and uneven as she tried to keep her cries silent. The _last_ thing she needed was Adora to hear her through the wall and come over to comfort her. Comfort wouldn't help, it would only make the hurt last longer.

She bit the pillow so hard her jaw hurt, squeezing her eyes tight until she lost the strength to stay awake and drifted off to sleep with tears still full in her eyes.

Why open your heart if you know you'll just get hurt?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me a while to write not gonna lie-
> 
> Surprisingly the kiss scene took me the longest haha
> 
> Can't wait to see y'all yell at me in the comments lmao
> 
> Finally get a kiss then hurt feels lmao, I'm evil I know XDD
> 
> Till next time! <3


	6. Conflict

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora the thembo to the rescue!
> 
> TW: vaping

Adora wasn't sure how- or quite frankly _why_ \- but the dynamic between their band members seemed to change after the group's night of drinking.

Specifically between her two closest friends, Catra and Glimmer.

They couldn't put their finger on it, but something had clearly changed in the past three days and both girls were refusing to even _comment_ on it. How could Adora help fix the problem if both parties were being silent?

"Adora?" Glimmer broke the blonde from their thoughts as Adora snapped their head up to attention. "You're late."

"Huh?" Adora blinked and realised all of the Rebellion members were looking at them now, some in concern and others annoyance. Adora figured this wasn't the first time they all had called for their attention.

"The song. You keep starting on the wrong count. It's six beats, not eight, remember?" Glimmer gently reminded with a soft smile, her eyes full of worry she was failing to conceal.

"Right. Sorry." Adora cleared their throat and nodded in affirmation.

They caught Catra's gaze, a silent look of _'are you okay'_ written across her features. Adora smiled; they loved it when Catra was open with them, even this much- loved Catra caring about them.

There had been a time where Catra wouldn't so much as look Adora's way, so they really cherished the girl's friendship more than ever since getting it back.

"Okay, from the top!" Lonnie called, tapping her sticks together to start the count.

Adora managed to get through the set twice without messing up this time around, sighing in relief when Lonnie finally said that was good enough for the day.

"Hey." Catra mumbled, bumping Adora's shoulder as she passed. Adora sighed, recognising it as Catra's way of saying she wanted to talk to them.

They dragged their feet out of the door and followed after Catra outside of the building where the girl already had her vape pen pulled out, puffing a train of blueish smoke Adora recognised as blueberry peach.

"What's going on in your head?" Catra asked with a deep breath before taking another long drag.

"That's a different flavor. You weren't smoking it last time I caught you." The blonde deflected.

"Yeah, they didn't have kiwi strawberry or cotton candy. Wanna hit?" Catra asked, coughing slightly as she held the stick to her friend.

Adora shook their head. "Nah, you know I only do cherry limeade and tropical mango." They shrugged with a polite smile.

Catra snickered and took a quick puff. "Oh yeah. _Weird shit._ "

Adora rolled their eyes and joined in her giggles, leaning against the wall at Catra's side close enough to feel the slightly cooler air from her vapors.

"Shut up." Adora hummed, resting their head back against the brick wall to gaze lazily at their friend. "Does your therapist know you still smoke?"

"What she doesn't know won't-" Catra paused and Adora cringed internally knowing she had caught on to what they were doing. "Stop stalling. What keeps bothering you?" She glared at them for a response, crossing her arms.

Adora sighed. "It's not really _my_ problem, per se."

"Then who's?"

Adora raised a brow at her.

"What? I don't have a problem!" Catra squeaked, jumping to attention with wide eyes at the accusation.

"You and Glimmer have one. You just won't tell me what it is." Adora deadpanned, not wanting to tiptoe around whatever this was anymore.

Catra sputtered, verbally stumbling for a response that wouldn't leave herself vulnerable. Adora sighed.

"Just tell me, you know I won't make it a big deal." They said encouragingly with a small smile.

Catra studied the blonde's face for a moment before sighing in defeat. "Fine." She muttered, slumping down against the wall to pull a knee to her chest, wrapping an arm around it while her other hand worked to puff another drag of her fruity vape.

Adora sat at her side and leaned on a hand to be a bit closer to their friend, looking at Catra expectantly with an encouraging half-grin.

"I kissed Sparkles." Catra blurted, clearing her throat as she set the pen in her lap to run a hand through her shave and scratch a bit harder than usual as she closed her eyes. "Correction: I _made-out_ with Sparkles."

"Oh..." Adora blinked, startled with surprise. They didn't think the two _remotely_ got along, let alone were on good enough terms to do something like make out. "Wait, at the club?"

"After." Catra sighed, clicking her tongue as her brows furrowed and she squeezed her eyes tighter, her nails lightly digging into her scalp. "And then I upset her, and now she won't even fucking _look_ at me, 'Dora... What do I do? I fucked up..."

They sucked in a tight breath. It was really strange to see Catra seem so- so _vulnerable_ \- regarding anyone other than Adora and **her**. It would be really endearing if it wasn't so off-putting.

"Well, what happened?" Adora asked, resting a hand on the brunette's shoulder.

Catra let out a shaky breath, pulling up both knees to rest her forehead on them while her arms wrapped around them tightly.

Holy shit, was Catra about to _cry_? Over _Glimmer_? What alternate universe had Adora landed in?

"I-I was in her room, and you called," A pang of guilt shot through Adora as their hand on Catra's shoulder stiffened, "a-and she got upset that I lied about being with her..."

"I-I don't even know why I did it! I-I panicked! She won't even let me _explain_ myself..." Catra sighed deeply, her hands gripping the fabric of her jeans to ground herself before she could get the chance to cry.

Adora sat speechless, their lips parted though no words came out. How were they supposed to respond to that? To finding out that her two best friends- sorry, Bow- had kissed? That they _liked_ each other?

Or at least Catra liked Glimmer. She couldn't speak on the other girl's behalf. But still, that information alone was enough to thoroughly blow Adora's mind.

The blonde was ripped from their thoughts as Catra abruptly stood, hands and vape stuffed into her pockets as she turned rigidly and let out a trembling exhale, facing away from them to hide the fact that she was starting to cry. She refused to let Adora see her cry if she could help it.

"Whatever. If she won't let me explain myself she can see me as a- as a _monster_." Catra growled.

Adora gasped. They knew how much she hated that word, the word **she** would call her constantly.

"Catra..." The blonde started, jumping to their feet to reach for her.

Catra flinched away without even looking. "It's fine." She huffed.

"I don't care what Sparkles has to say. If she won't talk to me, tell her I said to 'fuck off'."

And with that, the brunette left, leaving a stunned, guilty blonde behind.

Oh, Catra. Don't worry, Adora was determined to fix this.

~~~

The blonde found themself knocking on Glimmer's door a few hours later, long after everyone had retired to their own rooms for the day.

"Oh, hey, Adora." Glimmer answered the door, sounding sleepy yet nervous as if she'd been expecting someone else.

After a previous conversation, Adora had a good guess as to who.

"Can I come in?" The blonde asked softly, smiling softly.

The shorter woman stepped aside and Adora slipped into the room, taking the opportunity to ruffle Glimmer's newly cut hair as she giggled and swatted their hand away lightly.

"Listen, don't be mad." Adora began, noticing the way Glimmer tensed and clenched her fists like she was already getting mad before they even spoke.

"Catra told me you kissed." The guitarist blurted quickly, rubbing their neck as they averted their gaze in case Glimmer was angry.

"Did she say anything else..?" Glimmer's voice was small, weak, _broken_.

Adora's heart clenched. They never wanted to hear that sound, _especially_ from Glimmer. They cared too much about the girl to hear her so sad.

"She... She feels awful... She wishes you would let her explain herself to you..." Adora explained.

Glimmer scoffed and Adora saw tears glistening in her eyes. "Yeah. Explain how she kissed me and then threw me away." She said sarcastically with a forced smile.

Adora surged forward, hesitantly pulling the girl in for a hug. Glimmer broke, hugging back as she began crying into their chest.

"I'm so stupid, Adora... Why do I keep falling for people who don't like me back...?" Glimmer whimpered.

Adora tensed, wincing as they sighed and held her tighter. "I-I don't know... I'm sorry..."

"Not your fault... I think we make better friends, anyway..." Adora smiled slightly at her words, "I just thought... I hoped Catra could be different... I _wanted_ her to be different..."

"She is different!" Adora defended. "Y-You just have to give her a chance. She doesn't-"

"I _gave_ her a chance, Adora! And she _lied_ about being with me!" Glimmer snapped, pushing away from them to turn and hug herself as she cried. "She _used_ me. She was just drunk and wanted an excuse to kiss someone. I was just stupid enough to let her."

Adora opened their mouth, quickly shutting it as Glimmer shot her a glare that said to be quiet.

"I really fucking _like_ her, Adora... I like her a lot..." She whispered, her lips trembling.

"I-I know, she-"

"Don't _even_ say she likes me too!"

Adora closed their mouth, looking at their feet as they rubbed their neck.

"She doesn't like me. She hates me. I was just stupid enough to think that... That she _cared_ about me..." Glimmer whispered, hugging herself as she trembled trying to hold back her sobs.

Adora sighed, hugging the girl close again as they rubbed her back slowly. "I'm sorry..." was all they managed to say.

Adora brought Glimmer over to the bed and helped her sit down as the shorter woman climbed into her lap like a koala hugging a tree. Adora giggled slightly, rubbing her back gently as Glimmer cried.

"I don't know what to do, Adora... I... I just want to kiss her all the time... I want her to like me... I want her to care about me... I... I want her..." Glimmer whimpered between quiet sobs.

Adora was heartbroken by the sounds, holding Glimmer close as they lightly gripped the back of her shirt to hold her close.

"Hey... I know you don't really want to, but I think you should really give her a chance to talk... I've... I've never seen Catra act this way over anyone before..." The blonde spoke softly, biting their lip.

"Really...?" Glimmer asked hopefully, looking up at them.

Adora nodded, planting a gentle kiss to her forehead on her forehead as Glimmer smiled softly. "Really."

"Okay... I'll give her a chance. _One_ chance, Adora." Glimmer agreed.

"That's all I ask." Adora nodded, smiling.

They had done it. They had fixed this! As far as they could, anyway. The rest was up to the two of them.

Now all they could do was hope Catra didn't shut Glimmer out, or that Glimmer actually let Catra have a chance to try to salvage this.

On second thought, this might be harder than they thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long to make, I've been pretty preoccupied lately. I'll try to be better and update sooner next time. Sorry for the inconvenience!


	7. Retry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Longer chapter again, but with backstory this time!
> 
> TW: Implied child abuse, blackmail, slight mental breakdown, misgendering, overall darker themes
> 
> Yeah... This isn't a fluffy chapter-  
> Sorry-

Catra nervously scratched at her shave, ignoring the small bumps already forming from how often she'd been doing it for the past few days. Ever since the kiss.

She sighed as she yet again thought of that night, of the look in Glimmer's eyes and on her face after the phone call. Her gut swirled with guilt as her mind conjured up the kiss itself, both loving and hating it.

Loving it because it was by far the best kiss of her life- sorry Adora, Scorpia and Lonnie- but hating it because she knows deep in her heart that she shouldn't have let it happen in the first place. Glimmer had been drunk, and she wasn't exactly sober either.

She didn't even know if Glimmer ended up liking it, if Glimmer even wanted to _think_ about it. Judging from past experiences, Catra was left under the impression that her kissing abilities must be pretty horrible as each person she'd kissed, she'd only kissed once- excluding Adora, but they didn't like kisses regardless so that data was inconclusive of her kissing abilities.

"Stop spiraling", she kept telling herself in her mind, "Don't focus on _what ifs_ and focus on the _right now_ ". Geez, her brain was sounding more and more like her therapist- a, in Catra's opinion boring yet insightful, woman named Light Hope- every time she video called the woman.

Catra sighed and shook her head, fixing her longer hair by running a hand through it and scratching the scalp lightly to comb through the tangles.

"Catra." Glimmer said, snapping the girl to attention so fast she thought she might break her neck turning it so fast.

"Oh- Hey." Catra said quickly, her voice higher than usual and hoarse with nerves as she cleared her throat to try again. "Hey."

Glimmer smiled for a second- only a second- before it faded, taking the last of Catra's remaining joy with it. "Hi."

"Uh, wanna go in?" Catra pointed to the door of the diner she had been leaning against the wall to.

Glimmer hummed a sound of agreement and gave a curt nod, pushing her hands in the pockets of her denim jacket as she slid past Catra- who had been holding the door open for her- into the establishment.

The two walked over to a booth near the corner away from the windows, both silently agreeing they didn't want to risk their bandmates or any fans seeing them and interrupting this much needed discussion.

The waiter soon came over for their drinks as Catra decided to go with a rootbeer float while Glimmer chose some strawberry flavored soda.

Once the man left, the silence resumed; just as thick and awkward as before.

Glimmer sighed, the first sound from their table since the order.

She opened her mouth to speak just as the waiter came back to get their food orders and drop off their beverages. Catra went with a plate of brisket while Glimmer got a fruit salad.

The silence continued for yet another stretch of time.

Catra clicked her tongue, gripping the edge of the table as she waited impatiently for the waiter so they didn't have to worry any more about being interrupted.

Thanks to some greater force- Glimmer and Catra seperately agreed it must be the universe and it's strange logic and timing- the man soon brought their food and left them be.

Glimmer finally opened her mouth to speak as Catra was using her fork and knife to tear into her food. "I want to talk about that night."

She didn't even have to specify which night for Catra to wince knowingly and nod timidly, setting down her utensils slowly as she looked at Glimmer to see if she would begin.

When Glimmer said nothing Catra sighed, taking it as her cue to speak.

"I-"

"No. No, I'm going first. Just... Give me a second." Glimmer pinched the bridge of her nose as Catra cursed herself for finding it adorable while also wanting to reach over and use her thumb to smooth that stupid pinch away and kiss it better.

"You tried to say then, but I want a sober answer. Why do you hate me?" Glimmer asked, looking seriously into her eyes.

Catra cleared her throat and sipped her float. "Who said I was sober?" She joked, trying to deflect or at least bring forth that smile that made her willing to jump in front of a train just to see.

After not recieving said smile- or any reaction, really- Catra sighed and nodded. "Alright. Let me gather my thoughts." She said softly, mentally scolding herself for how vulnerable it came out compared to her usual tough tone.

"I guess.. I should start from the beginning." Catra finally said with a soft sigh after taking a large gulp of her ice cream-filled drink.

Glimmer tensed slightly- only slightly!- and waited patiently with her eyes trained to the brunette as she tried to focus on something other than those lips she was dying to feel against her own again no matter how hard she tried to forget and reject them from her mind. She settled for staring at one of the cartilage piercings on her ear and listened.

"Well... I guess I'll just start with the first time I ever saw you.." Catra began as the memory came back crystal clear to her mind.

_Catra sat down in her seat in her new class: Business Management. Why she needed this stupid course for her degree, she had no idea. Plus, she was the only junior in there by the looks of the crowds of freshmen and sophomores around her, this was so unfair!_

_She huffed and leaned back in her chair, popping her earbuds in to play the demo of Adora's guitar instrumental to her new song,_ **_Broken Wings_ ** _, with a soft smile. The sound of her best friend's strums always relaxed her._

_She was roughly pulled from her thoughts, however, when a hand roughly tugged them out as someone brushed passed her._

_"The teacher called your name." The girl said in a goodie-two-shoes tone that made Catra roll her eyes in annoyance as she raised her hand in response._

_The girl nodded, her wavy, pink-purple ombre mess of a hairdo bobbing slightly as Catra repressed a snicker at the sight._

_She then briskly walked back to her own seat in the front row as the teacher, a woman who Catra briefly recognised from last year when she had subbed for her tech teacher, nodded in approval and started on the lesson._

_Catra glanced at the girl who had called her out again and scoffed quietly, a scowl of distaste settling over her face. Fucking princess._

"Wait, so _that's_ why you've hated me all these years? That was like, _four years ago_ and I was just-" Catra cut her off by holding up a hand, using the other one to eat a bite of meat from her fork.

"No. I said I was starting with our first meeting." The bassist said calmly after swallowing without looking up at her.

"Anyway," she began again through a mouthful of food as Glimmer scrunched her nose but said nothing, "Then there was the time you distracted Adora so bad they broke their ankle."

"I-I didn't-!" Glimmer cut herself off with a huff, chugging her soda before pulling back with a sigh. "Get on with it." She grumbled.

Catra snickered and smirked lightly before letting it fade back into a concentrated frown, her brows re-creasing as she thought long and hard.

Glimmer found it kind of cute, no matter how much she wished she didn't. Damn her bisexual brain for complicating her life.

"But I guess the biggest reason would be..." Catra sucked in a tight breath, her gaze falling from her plate to her lap as she bit her lip and forced herself to continue for both of their sakes, "Because of how _willing_ you were to just... _Trust_ **her**..."

"Her...?" Glimmer echoed.

Catra looked up, her gaze dark and heavy as it pinned Glimmer in place and forced her to tense and hold her breath under its intensity.

The brunette took a few breaths and closed her eyes, rolling them back as she squeezed her fists to keep herself from crying or otherwise causing a scene. She couldn't let that woman control her forever.

"Serenity Marie Weaver. _Shadow_ Weaver." She finally choked out, swallowing the lump rising in her throat.

Glimmer nearly cried watching how hard Catra had to push just to say her name, feeling Catra's pain in the instant the name was uttered before it disappeared and a chilling shudder ran down her spine in its place.

"Oh..." Glimmer whispered with a shaky exhale, letting her body hesitantly relax from its tensed position.

"Oh." Catra nodded lazily, her head bobbing. Her voice held no emotion, almost as if the girl had turned them off in order to keep herself contained.

Glimmer frowned deeper as her heart clenched. Adora had told her small bits of their time under the woman's care, but Catra had been with her much longer, and they refused to talk about any instances that Catra had been a part of as well regarding the awful woman.

"You remember her, don't you?" Catra said in the same cold, distant tone, almost like she wasn't really there but somewhere planets or even galaxies away.

Glimmer forced herself to nod. How could she forget someone like her?

_Glimmer froze at the woman's words. "W-What?" She asked fearfully._

_"I know you believe yourself in love with Adora, but believe me, my daughter has better things to do with her time than play games with young girls like you." The woman waved her hand dismissively, speaking with a slow drawl in her tone as Glimmer gulped at the sound._

_"I-I don't- I'm worthy of their time! What are you even saying, lady? You don't own them!" Glimmer shot, standing from her seat across from the woman abruptly as she slammed a fist on the desk between them angrily. Not only was this woman misgendering her friend, but she was going so far as to make ownership-like claims over them! Glimmer's blood was starting to boil._

_"I'm her_ mother. _Foster mother, at least. Either way, I digress. If you want more time with your precious Adora, we'll just have to come up with a solution for her problem, won't we?" The woman smiled, the sight so eerie it made Glimmer's jaw clench and caused a shudder to run down her spine._

_"P-Problem?" Glimmer stammered._

_"Yes. It seems the girl has taken it upon herself to pay for all of the band's expenses herself. Your school pays for her tuition, so thankfully she's only found it in herself to tackle two part time jobs. I'd hate to think what extents she'd stretch herself thin using if that weren't the case." The woman chuckled._

_Glimmer growled, her fists tightening so much they trembled slightly and her fingers went numb._

_"So? What do you propose?" Glimmer spat through grit teeth, hating that her only chance to help her friend lied in the hands of this creepy lady._

_"Your family, as I hear, is quite wealthy. Are they not?" She raised a brow as Glimmer nodded hesitantly, causing her smile to broaden to show unclean, yellowing teeth that made Glimmer surpress the urge to gag. Stars, this woman was so scary and gross! "So wealthy, in fact, that a measly few thousand dollars once a week would be but a small sum missing from their pockets?"_

_Glimmer's eyes widened as she realised what was being asked of her. "Y-You.. You can't be serious..." She whispered, freezing on the spot._

_"Oh, poor Adora... Six hours of school, ten hours of work, seven days a week? Added to... How many hours does she spend with you per day? Tell me, how many hours do you suppose that leaves for her to sleep?" The woman mused with a smirk._

_"I..." Glimmer gulped, willing herself not to cry from anger and fear. Not in front of this woman. "A-Alright. If it'll help Adora..." She agreed begrudgingly._

_The woman stood, extending a hand. "Pleasure doing business with you, Miss..."_

_"Glimmer. Glimmer Moonstone." Glimmer took the hand quickly to make it seem like she wasn't afraid of her._

_"Shadow_ _Weaver." The woman grinned, shaking their hands firmly while staring into Glimmer's soul with cold, wicked eyes._

"Of course." Glimmer whispered, exhaling deeply at the memory.

The interactions had gone on for months, nearly six before her parents had caught on. By that point, Glimmer was so fearful and guilty that she had completely come clean to the missing sixty grand, telling them everything and leaving nothing out.

"They took her away, you know... Sent her to prison?" Catra looked to her to see how she would react.

Glimmer nodded. Figures, it was national news.

"When they took her, they weren't just taking away some evil bitch. She was my-" Catra choked, coughing a bit as she gripped the edge of the table tight enough for her knuckles to turn white to distract herself. "She was, for what it's worth, my mother. The closest thing I ever had to one. No matter how she treated me, what she did to me, she was still my mother."

"Catra-"

"Did Adora ever tell you that after Shadow Weaver was taken that I was homeless?" Catra chuckled humorlessly. "Yeah, for _three months_. I lived in my _car_ , you know? Adora felt so bad they offered me a place on their couch. And you know the best part?" She grinned, but there was no joy in any of her features. "I _still_ sleep there when we aren't touring."

Glimmer didn't know what to do, didn't know what to say.

"Catra, I'm-"

"If you apologise, I won't ever finish this and you'll never get the full story." Catra warned, agressively cutting through her meat over and over until only the quiet scrapes of knife on plate could be heard in the space of the small booth.

"Okay. Continue. Please." Glimmer whispered, nodding. She jumped slightly as Catra abruptly let go of her silverware, letting them clatter to the plate as they clanked together.

"I had to blame something. Blame _someone._ I couldn't hate her, she was... She was my _mom_... She..." Catra trailed off, her hands trembling as tears brimmed in the corners of her eyes.

Glimmer reached across before she could think otherwise, resting her hand atop Catra's. The girl gasped softly, eyes shooting up to look at Glimmer in confusion and pure anxiety.

Glimmer nodded for her to continue, gently running her thumb over Catra's knuckles slowly as the girl sobbed and hid her face quickly in her shirt as she trembled.

"She... She treated me so _horribly_... H-How... How can I...?" Catra squeaked out a sob, heaving deep breaths as she cried hard.

"You can miss someone even if they do bad things... You can care about someone who's hurt you... It's okay, Catra... Your feelings are valid..." Glimmer spoke softly for the what felt like first time in a while in this conversation.

Catra weeped more forcefully, alerting some of the tables around them as Glimmer glanced around with a small smile to let the other patrons and staff know they were alright.

Catra's hand turned over beneath Glimmer's, trembling as she took the shorter girl's hand in her own and squeezed hard.

Glimmer squeezed back, her heart breaking for her as she frowned deeply and ran her thumb over the back of her hand soothingly.

"She never even said she loved me... So why do I..?" Catra choked out a sob as she struggled to keep her voice quiet. Even if they could hear her sobs, Catra didn't want other people to hear the words and meaning behind them.

"You don't need a reason to love people. It just happens." Glimmer said softly.

Catra nodded with a whimper. "Yeah... Guess not..."

The booth filled with a new silence for a good while, the only sounds being Catra's muffled sobs as she bit the inside of her shirt to keep from biting her tongue or cheek instead. Glimmer continued to stroke and hold her hand, refusing to let go until Catra asked her to.

It was around ten minutes later before Catra released Glimmer's hand, which had turned a pinkish-red from the continuous pressure. She reached for the napkins from inside the shirt and Glimmer complied, handing her a small stack to clean herself as her sobs came to a stop and she breathed deeply and steadily.

Catra righted herself and took a deep breath after wiping away her tear streaks and sweat away as much as she could. Though it did nothing for the redness or puffiness of her eyes, it was the best she could manage.

"I'm sorry, Spa-" Catra cringed. "Glimmer... I'm sorry for holding all this _resentment_ towards you for so long. But I promise... I don't feel that way any more. Not even a bit." She said, looking into Glimmer's eyes as the girl's heart skipped a beat.

"Then... How do you feel now?" Glimmer asked, her voice full of hope and curiosity, but also twinging with the fear of rejection.

Catra tensed. She had suspected this question might come up, but she hadn't considered it enough to come up with an actual answer.

"I... I don't know." Catra said honestly, biting her lip as she saw a bit of Glimmer's twinkle leave her eyes at her response.

"I just... The only relationship I ever had was with Adora, and that was more or less them feeling obligated to be with me. I don't know how to... Be in a _real_ relationship. If that makes sense." Catra quickly corrected, hoping it would change her expression to anything that didn't remind her of the one she wore hearing her lie to Adora over the phone that night.

Glimmer slowly nodded in understanding. "But then... What do we do?" She asked softly. "I really want to be with you, Catra..."

Catra's heart fluttered as her breath hitched. "I-I... I think I do, too... Just..."

"Not right now." Glimmer finished for her.

Catra sighed and nodded. "Yeah..."

"I get it. So..." Glimmer held her hand out palm up across the table, smiling slightly as she bit her lip. "Friends? Until we decide what to do with our feelings properly?"

Catra smiled back just as small, resting her hand in Glimmer's as they both squeezed softly simultaneously. "Yeah... I'd really like that..." She said, nodding while looking Glimmer in the eye.

"Me too..." Glimmer agreed, nodding as well.

Catra couldn't be more relieved, finally speaking to Glimmer again after almost a full week of avoidance on both ends. Not to mention she was even holding her hand! Maybe being friends wouldn't be so bad, at least for the time being.

It may not be what Glimmer had been hoping for, but there was still a chance. Plus, she'd take being Catra's friend over not talking to her any day. Now all she could do was hope Catra figured her feelings out so she could share her own properly.

All they can do now is wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry-
> 
> But hey friendship so that kind of helps make up for it...?
> 
> Maybe..??
> 
> Don't hate me please-


	8. Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor Glimmer, you disaster bi...

Glimmer was trying. She really was! Catra just made it so- so very _hard_ to be strictly platonic with.

Especially when she did things like this.

 _This_ being sitting in a seat on the tour bus, sitting in a relaxed, open legged position as she fiddled with her bass in her lap with this adorable pout of concentration that Glimmer couldn't stop wishing she could kiss.

Stars, this friendship was going to be the death of her.

Catra glanced up at Glimmer as she felt her breath hitch, offering a sliver of a smile before resuming her work. The smile didn't fade once as Glimmer kept staring at her.

Adora snickered nearby, causing Glimmer to blush slightly and turn her head to face them.

"You two are adorable." They teased with a lazy grin, facing backwards in their booth seat to look at Glimmer as they rested their chin on the back of the seat.

"Shut up." Glimmer sighed deeply, glancing down at her lap as she fiddled with her fingers nervously.

Okay, maybe telling Adora about her ever-growing feelings for Catra _and_ their newfound friendship wasn't her best idea, given the amount of teasing and knowing looks she'd recieved from the guitarist ever since.

"Now that I'm getting to see you like a friend for myself, I can't help but feel really guilty for college." Adora snickered, their tone light and teasing as they gave Glimmer a playful grin. Their eyes held a certain uneasiness though, clearly stating the truth behind their words.

Glimmer smiled slightly and rolled her eyes. "Get over yourself. That ended immediately after I got to know the _real_ you." She teased back.

Adora laughed, grinning widely that adorkable grin that always helped Glimmer relax no matter how tense she was. How were Bow and Adora so good at doing that, anyway?

Glimmer shook her head, a similar grin forcing itself onto her face as well. "See? You're too dorky to love." She mused.

Adora let out a cackle of laughter, tossing their head back as their bandmates turned in confusion to the sudden burst of gleeful sounds.

Glimmer smiled shyly at the sudden attention, giggling quietly herself.

"I bet _Catra's_ not too dorky, though." Adora hummed once they calmed enough to speak quietly.

Glimmer scoffed, her jaw dropping halfway in a mixture of surprise and embarrassment as she flubbed to say something- _anything_ \- in response to _that_.

"Shut the hell up." Glimmer finally hissed through grit teeth, blushing all the way to the tips of her ears as Adora smugly smirked at the sight with a raised brow.

"Nah." Adora shrugged, snickering. "I like making you flustered. You're so adorable!"

Glimmer huffed and rolled her eyes. She always got so annoyed when people called her that. Glimmer was _hot_ , not _adorable._ Get it right, people!

The conversation dropped from there and she stole another glance at the brunette, only to blush and quickly turn to face the window when she caught Catra giving her an adorable head tilt and curious grin with a slightly quirked brow. How dare she be so- so- Ah! Glimmer couldn't even _articulate_ what this goddess of a woman was! It was so tantalisingly infuriating!

Adora snorted with laughter as Glimmer flicked them in the forehead, causing the blonde to gasp slightly in surprise and whine like some sort of toddler as they rubbed the sore spot with a frown. "Kidding!" They huffed.

Glimmer smirked proudly that she had succeeded in making Adora stop teasing her, humming in satisfaction as she pulled out her phone. She began scrolling until she found her folder of song demos from her phone's files, selecting her favorite one to play.

" ** _Time to time, I sit and wonder... About my endless list of blunders... Where did I go wrong? When did I stop being strong?_** " Catra's voice drifted into her ears from her ear buds, sending shivers down her spine. The track was a scrapped song that was never fully finished, but Adora had privately recorded Catra performing it one final time and sent the file to Glimmer since they knew Catra's songs were her favourite from the band.

" ** _Fighting this wave of emotions... Wishing for a courage potion... Maybe if I give it time... I'll find a reason, find a rhyme..._** "

Glimmer bit her lip as she shuddered in time with each slow and spaced strum from Catra's bass, the only instrumental accompaniment to the track and sound aside from Catra's occasional intakes of breath into the mic.

" ** _Searching... Searching for a reason to go on..._** "

The shorter woman risked a glance at Catra to see the girl playfully arm wrestling with Lonnie. She caught Glimmer's gaze and traded her smirk for a more sincere smile, her arm being slammed against the table while distracted as Glimmer faintly heard the girl yelp in surprise over her music along with the sound of Lonnie laughing in victory while pumping her fists in the air.

Catra pouted a tad childishly and blew some hair from her eye, causing Glimmer to blush softly and giggle slightly before pausing her music and sliding her phone back into her pocket. Why listen to a recording when she could hear Catra's voice right now?

She stood and walked over, sitting beside the brunette once Lonnie returned to her booth across from Adora to talk to them now that Glimmer wasn't there for the blonde to converse with anymore.

"Hey." She greeted with a smile, glancing over at Catra as she tried to ignore the butterflies fluttering wildly in her stomach.

"Hey." Catra said softly as Glimmer's breath silently hitched. Her voice sounded even smoother and richer than in the recording.

The brunette gave her a curious smile after a moment and Glimmer blinked, realising she had been staring at the girl like a creep.

"So, uh, ready for our next gig? It's in Plumeria, right?" Glimmer asked, trying to start a conversation.

Catra tensed uneasily and Glimmer silently wondered if she somehow chose the wrong topic.

"Yeah, Plumeria..." Catra echoed, sounding off somehow though her expression barely changed.

Was that a sore subject? Oh, great! Glimmer was _just_ starting to earn her friendship, and now-

"Earth to Sparkles?" Catra raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "I know I'm sexy but you don't have to ogle me." She teased.

Glimmer flushed and looked away quickly as her eyes instantly trained on the table instead, embarrassed to have been caught staring while she was in a trance.

"Sorry." She mumbled, clearing her throat.

"Don't be." Catra shrugged and lazily leaned against her. "Can I play on your phone?"

"What are you, eight?" Glimmer snickered.

Catra chuckled and glanced at her with a smirk while leaning her back on the girl's shoulder. "Nah, I just don't have enough storage space on my phone for any fun stuff. 'Dora told me you usually have one or two on yours at all times, though."

Glimmer rolled her eyes and used her thumbprint to unlock the device, handing it over without much thought.

She blushed after realisation hit her with the sound of the song blaring from her earbuds which were still wrapped lightly around her shoulders.

" _ **Find me... Save me... Heal me... Love me... I'm just... Searching... Searching for a reason to go on... Searching... Searching for a reason to go on...**_ "

Glimmer caught Catra's gaze to find the girl blushing just as deep- if not deeper- than herself. Catra quickly turned the phone screen back off and thrusted the electronic back into Glimmer's hands before swiveling slightly in the seat to look out the window.

Glimmer put the phone back in her pocket slowly, her heart thudding wildly. Oh god, now Catra knew she listened to her singing voice.

What if Catra guessed how she played it on nights she couldn't sleep? What if Catra thought she was creepy for keeping such an old song that she probably had forgotten about writing in the first place? What if she asked Glimmer to _delete_ it? Her mind was racing almost in sync with her heart. _Almost._

"I... Haven't heard that one in a while..." Catra spoke after what felt to Glimmer like two life-times. "It... Do I really sound like that when I sing..?" She chuckled weakly, but her tone felt more insecure than she lead on.

"I like it when you sing." Glimmer blurted before she could think better of it, biting her lip as she heard Catra suck in a tight breath.

"Thanks, Sparkles..." Catra whispered, and the softness in her words made it feel like only she and Glimmer existed in the entire universe- just for a brief moment of time.

The moment was interrupted by the sound of Hordak's watch beeping loudly and frantically as one of his _bazillion_ timers must have gone off. That man probably set timers to _breathe_ for how many times Glimmer had heard them since joining the band.

She looked up at Catra to see the girl already looking at her, melting under the gaze from her amber and blue-green eyes. How could a person's eyes be so mysterious yet tell you so many things at the same time?

So many emotions seemed to swirl behind those beautiful irises, mixing from more tender ones that made Glimmer's heart skip a beat to indecipherable ones of guilt- but guilt over what? Strangely, those ones didn't seem reserved for Glimmer, which only made her wonder what the girl could be thinking about to cause her to hold so much of it in her eyes.

"Catra?" Glimmer whispered as Catra finally blinked a few times. Wait, when had they gotten so close?!

"Y-Yeah?" The brunette said with a quick exhale through her nose that made Glimmer's lips tingle momentarily.

"Are you okay?"

The question seemed to take Catra by surprise as her eyes widened a bit before she leaned away from Glimmer slightly to put some distance between them.

"Yeah, of course." Catra shrugged and nodded, trying to seem nonchalant as she avoided Glimmer's gaze until after she finished responding.

"You can talk to me, you know." Glimmer hesitantly rested a hand on Catra's shoulder. She went to pull away as the girl flinched, only for Catra to rest her own over it to keep the hand in place.

Catra sighed and bit her lip, resting her forehead between Glimmer's shoulder and collarbone on her chest area. Glimmer sucked in a breath, not trusting herself to breathe out of worry that she'd end up sniffing Catra's shampoo or something.

"Scorpia... Lives in Plumeria." Catra said softly, her voice just slightly higher than a whisper so Glimmer could hear it over the engine while still being quiet enough so nobody else would hear it.

Glimmer opened her mouth to speak but Catra made a small grunt, a silent plea for her to be quiet so she could say whatever she was thinking about.

"I wasn't a very good friend to Scorpia for a pretty long time... I ignored her, yelled at her, acted like she meant nothing to me... And that's not even the worst of it..." Catra chuckled dryly.

"What... What is, then?" Glimmer asked softly, resting her hand on the small of Catra's back to pull her closer ever-so-slightly. Catra tensed against her before relaxing further than before, curling into Glimmer like- well- a _cat._

"I knew she liked me... I knew for a long time... And every so often I would just feel so _lonely_ , that I..." Catra trailed off with a sharp, quivering breath.

Glimmer swallowed, wetting her lips with her tongue as she exhaled slowly and tightened her hold of Catra.

Two thoughts occurred to her then: An understanding of the guilt in Catra's eyes, and a sickening worry that Glimmer would somehow end up just like Scorpia with Catra.

"I was so horrible... I-I lead her on for _so long..._ I-I didn't deserve her forgiveness, I _don't_ deserve her forgiveness... She should hate me... Why doesn't she hate me..?" Catra rambled on, seeming to be thinking aloud rather than speaking to Glimmer at this point.

"Do you feel bad about what you did?" Glimmer whispered, her voice cracking slightly.

Catra looked up at her and nodded, biting her lip. "Y-Yeah..."

"Does she know that?"

The brunette sighed and plopped her head back to its previous spot. "I don't know, honestly... I never really... _Apologised_. She just came up to me one day, hugged me, and said, ' _Don't worry about me, Wildcat. I'll be okay. Perfuma is good to me, she'll love me for real, like I deserve. You don't have to feel sorry for me anymore._ ', and that was the last we ever really talked about it. She just kept treating me like all her other friends after that, like I was still her friend. After letting her love me for so long..."

Glimmer's lips pressed into a thin line as she wrapped both arms around Catra to hold her close. On one hand, it hurt to hear Catra talk about someone _else_ who loved her, someone who also had feelings for the girl in her arms at some point in time. But on the other hand, an incredible warmth spread through her at the acknowledgement that Catra _trusted_ Glimmer enough to tell her any of this.

"I don't deserve to be her friend..." Catra's trembling voice brought the pink haired girl from her thoughts as she realised Catra was on the verge of tears. She quickly lifted Catra's chin with her index knuckle, kissing her forehead to hopefully soothe her as Glimmer knew how much she herself appriciated it when she was about to cry.

It seemed to have it's intended result, as Catra closed her eyes and sighed to ground herself with Glimmer's help. The singer pulled her lips away and looked down at Catra, resting their foreheads together lightly, the rumbling of the tour bus almost making it feel like Catra was purring against her.

"She clearly still cares about you if she's still willing to be your friend. I don't know the specifics of your relationship..." She trailed off before continuing, "But it sounds like there's still time to fix things between you."

"How?" Catra opened her eyes, looking straight into Glimmer's as the girl suddenly felt warm and ice cold because of it.

"Tell her how you feel. That you're sorry. That you feel bad for what you did and that you still want her in your life, as a friend." Glimmer smiled softly, gently cupping Catra's cheek to rub her thumb over the girl's sharp cheekbone.

Catra hummed in response, her eyes fluttering closed as she leaned into the touch. "Will... Will you come with me when I do...?" She asked hesitantly, anxiously.

"Of course." Glimmer answered almost instantly.

" _I'll go anywhere for you, with you._ " She added in her mind.

Not that she'd dare say that out loud while Catra was still comfortably relaxed against her. She didn't want to lose her friendship.

Right, Glimmer was just her friend.

Stars, this friendship really _was_ going to be the death of her.


	9. Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some feelings are awakened as our duo plan a trip in the city

Catra paced across the floor of her hotel room, one hand rubbing up and down her arm rhythmically while the other busied itself with scratching at her shave- which was due for a trim again, she realised.

"Catra, you need to calm down." Glimmer's voice broke through to her as Catra slowed her pace to a stop and turned on her heels to look at the girl.

Glimmer was sitting cross legged against the headboard of Catra's bed, giving her an adorably concerned look.

Wait, no, not _adorably_. She couldn't think like that. Not yet, at least.

"It's okay if you want to do this another time. We could always come back when the tour takes a pause if you're worried this will effect your stage presence." The girl spoke, her tone as gentle as her hugs that Catra was getting used to surprisingly fast.

"No!" Catra snapped, instantly tensing as she corrected herself, "No. I... I'm fine. I can do this."

"I know you can." Glimmer smiled. Why did she have to smile like that, like she really cared about Catra?

Again, no spiralling, Catra. Mission first.

"So... Are you driving?" Catra asked, biting her lip.

Glimmer looked a mix between confused and surprised.

"Why can't Adora drive?" Glimmer asked. Right, Adora.

"They uh, they aren't coming. Just us." The words made Catra's heart pull a betraying flutter around her chest.

Glimmer's brows shot up at her response, making Catra cringe internally. Was it a bad idea to not invite Adora? Had Glimmer been counting on them to come, so she wouldn't have to handle Catra by herself? Catra was pretty aware of how much of a handful she could be, after all.

"I... I just thought..." Glimmer trailed off a moment, making Catra realise they had both been staring at each other in silence until just then, "I thought you would've told them, that Adora would've offered to take you themself."

"No. They... They don't know, actually." Catra rubbed her neck. "You're the only person I've ever told. Not even, uh... M-My therapist knows."

Glimmer's eyes widened, her pupils tiny dots allowing Catra to see even more of their brown- pink? both? Glimmer's eye color was enchanting, but hard to place- color than usual.

"Oh..." She answered, nodding slowly.

"Oh." Catra echoed with a firm nod of her own.

"Uh, well, yes. I-I can drive." Glimmer said nervously in response to the earlier question. "Just kinda wish I would've known a bit in advance, heh..."

Catra tilted her head. "In advance?" She pressed.

"I uh... I-I get anxious behind the wheel..." Glimmer chuckled awkwardly as she sheepishly rubbed her neck while blushing slightly.

"Oh, shit, really?" Catra asked, taken aback. She didn't peg Glimmer for a nervous driver, everything she did exuded confidence.

"Uh, yeah." Glimmer hummed with a smile. "B-But it's okay, I can do it."

Catra bit her lip then opened her mouth to protest.

"Catra."

She closed her mouth.

"I can do this. Let me do this... F-For you." Glimmer gave her a shy little grin that made it nearly impossible for Catra not to look at those plump lips.

If she took a moment to think about it, she could _still_ remember those lips with perfect memory, even though their only kiss had happened under the influence.

Nope, wait. Thoughts straying, snap out of it Catra!

"Okay... Uh, t-thanks." Catra smiled back the best she could without her heart flying out of her mouth towards the girl on _her_ bed. The place where _Catra_ had been sleeping less than two hours ago.

The two then silently stood to walk out the door as Glimmer's hand brushed against Catra's. The brunette reacted on instinct, her hand burning to touch Glimmer's more as she held it tightly.

Her chest spasmed at she felt the stocky girl lace their fingers together and give her hand a soft, reassuring squeeze, trying as hard as she could to surpress a grin and continue walking without staring like a loser.

They reached the rental car Catra had booked an hour ago in the parking lot of the dealership a block from the hotel as Catra took a deep breath and handed the keys to Glimmer while looking her in the eyes.

"You've got this." Catra affirmed, squeezing her hand before slowly slipping hers out of Glimmer's so the other woman could drive.

"You too." Glimmer nodded with a shaky exhale, putting on a brave smile.

Catra's heart warmed. Glimmer shouldn't have to be brave for her. She started feeling more guilty for asking Glimmer to drive, cursing her bad driving streak for not allowing her to "legally" have a licence. Stupid government.

They slid into their seats and Glimmer's hand found Catra's as she reached to turn on the radio.

"Thanks, for believing in me. And uh, sorry in advance if I total this car." Glimmer joked with a nervous giggle.

"Hey, if I die I don't have to live on Adora's couch anymore. You'd be doing me a favor." Catra joked back with a snort.

Glimmer gasped playfully and lightly slapped her arm, her grin turning more genuine as she laughed with Catra.

She sighed with a smile and started the car with newfound confidence as Catra turned on the radio and rested her arm on the console between their seats with her palm facing the roof of the car. Glimmer glanced at it momentarily, seeming to get the hint as she rested her hand in Catra's.

The brunette noticed Glimmer's knuckles turning white against the wheel as she used her thumb to gently run over the knuckles of the hand in her own. She heard Glimmer gasp softly before relaxing, both hands slackening a bit as she eased into her seat.

Catra felt a bit of pride in how she was able to ground Glimmer, feeling useful for once as she held the girl's hand for support. It felt so good to feel wanted, Catra had forgotten what that felt like.

Sure she had the band, but that felt more like her career than anything else. Glimmer wasn't her job, wasn't someone she _needed_ to take care of- as the girl had proven at the bar- yet Catra still had an urge to just _help_ the girl beside her. It felt more right than anything she'd ever done, which was enough to make her feel ecstatic and fearful all at once with all of the revelations it brought with it.

"H-Hey, don't look at me like that. It's distracting." Glimmer said with a giggle, trying to sound teasing but coming off as flustered which, to be fair, she was.

Catra quickly looked away, her hands tensing slightly to make her squeeze Glimmer's a bit. "S-Sorry.."

"It's fine." Glimmer said, then fell silent a moment before speaking again. "You sure you want to do this today, when we have our gig tomorrow? I won't think any less of you if you change your mind and ask to do this another time."

Catra's heart clenched slightly, her mind screaming at her. " _It's a trap. She'll think you're weak and tell everyone what a_ _ **coward**_ _you are._ "

Glimmer glanced at her as they paused for a red light, squeezing her hand as their eyes locked and Catra's breath hitched.

No, Glimmer wasn't like that. For whatever reason- Catra _still_ had no fucking clue- the girl seemed to care about Catra, at least enough not to hurt her like that. The thought of Glimmer hurting _anyone_ seemed strange, even though she'd obviously seen it firsthand with how she nearly broke a man's nose with one punch.

"No. You're right, I got this." Catra nodded. Glimmer nodded back, giving her hand another squeeze before returning her focus to the road as the light turned green.

Catra couldn't help but marvel in the way Glimmer short hair blew with the breeze as the car sped along, her eyes seeming to dance with the reflection of the sun through the window, its rays casting a heavenly yellow glow around the girl.

"A-Again." Glimmer blinked a few times, her cheeks tinting slightly as she stole a quick glance Catra's way with a nervous lift to the end of her lips in an awkward smile.

Catra instantly snapped from her daze, shooting her eyes towards her own window as she swiveled in her seat to face slightly away from the girl.

Glimmer giggled, the sound momentarily causing Catra to forget how to breathe before she caught herself. "Weirdo." She mumbled.

"Me, a weirdo? Last time I checked my hair wasn't pink, Twinkles." Catra retorted with a smirk, earning a mock gasp of offence.

The brunette felt her heart stop a moment as Glimmer let go of her hand to playfully slap her arm before sliding back into place, making her let out a silent sigh of relief.

What was going _on_ with her? Catra _never_ got so riled up over some- some- some stupid _crush._ Wait, shit. Is that what this was?! Oh god. That definitely explained some shit. _Fuck_.

The easy small talk, the constant glances, the desire to just pull her close and hold her and kiss her right on those stupid lips until she-

"Uh, Catra? Are you really okay?" Glimmer had pulled over- when had she pulled over?- and was trying to snap her fingers in front of the girl's face to get her attention with a worried, almost frightened expression.

"W-What? Why wouldn't I be okay?" Catra asked defensively, looking away from the girl she'd _apparently_ been staring at. Again.

"You keep looking at me with a weird look on your face. What are you thinking about?" Glimmer asked in a tone that was so soft it should be illegal to use on lesbians. She gently ran her thumb back and forth over Catra's knuckles, and the bassist tried not to get entranced by the soothing action.

" _I'm thinking about you, moron._ " Catra thought, but didn't dare voice. " _I'm thinking about you, and I'm really trying not to but it's so hard when you're this cute._ "

"Nothing. I'm fine." Catra said, trying to put on a smile that wouldn't look like she was really happy to be around Glimmer right now.

"If it's about seeing Scorpia again," Right. The reason they were making this trip. Focus, Catra. "I'm sure she'll be glad to see you." Glimmer smiled supportively.

The girl rested her hand on Catra's upper arm and she flinched, practically _hissing_ in surprise. The look on Glimmer's face as she retracted her hand made Catra feel horrible; Glimmer should _never_ make that kind of face. Not in front of Catra, not ever.

"Sorry.. You uh... You surprised me." The brunette mumbled, rubbing the spot Glimmer touched to clear away the goosebumps prickling her skin from the momentary contact.

"Oh. Okay." Glimmer relaxed, softening. It made Catra's heart go haywire to see.

"I wanna do this. Let's go." Catra finally answered in response to the earlier question.

Glimmer bit her lip, her eyes scanning Catra's face in a way that made her feel safe yet vulnerable- a combination that, to Catra, seemed deadly.

"Sparkles." Catra tilted her head and threw her a smirk. "Don't choke up on me now, you're my ride."

Glimmer blinked, blushing as she returned her gaze to the front of the car.

The shorter woman reached for her keys but paused, glancing at Catra again and then down slightly. Catra furrowed her brows in confusion, prompting Glimmer to clarify. She laid her hand palm up on the dash, making a grabbing motion while looking down at her lap in embarrassment.

Catra smirked, her heart fluttering. "Cute..." She mumbled, blinking as she realised her thoughts were said aloud.

"Shut up and hold my hand, Catra." Glimmer grumbled, her ears tinting slightly with blush as Catra chuckled awkwardly and did as she was told.

Glimmer relaxed, a small smile curling onto her lips that- although trying to hide it from the other girl- Catra found irresistibly cute.

She was starting to regret her decision to become this girl's friend. Glimmer looked oh-so kissable when she was happy, and Catra was beginning to _love_ being the reason she felt that way right now.

"Let's go." Glimmer said confidently with a firm nod as she started the car again, pulling from the side of the road to finish their trip.

Catra found a feeling of dread settle in the pit of her stomach knowing they'd reach Scorpia soon. Was she really ready?

A quick squeeze from Glimmer's hand told her she was. Or even if she wasn't, that Glimmer would be by her side the entire time.

That was more than enough for her.


	10. Discussion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Big feels + big gay ahead
> 
> Buckle up, buckos-

Catra could do this. She _had_ to do this! Mostly because she and Glimmer had aready spent ten minutes parked down the block from Scorpia and Perfuma's- was that her name? Catra hadn't actually met her yet- flat.

"I can do this." She whispered for what felt like the billionth time since they arrived.

"Do you want me to stay here? I get it if this is too private for you." Glimmer spoke quietly beside her, reminding Catra again that she didn't have to do this alone. Glimmer had no idea how much that meant to her.

"No. No, I want you to come." Catra said, her voice cracking slightly from how rushed it came out. "Please." She exhaled, turning to look at her with pleading eyes.

Glimmer smiled- Catra was beginning to think she'd do anything for that smile- and reached out her hand while looking into Catra's eyes. The brunette almost didn't notice when a small, warm hand pressed against her upper arm for the second time that day, though this time she didn't shake it off.

"Then I'll be right by your side unless you ask me otherwise." The shorter woman nodded.

Catra reached up from her lap, her hand moving towards her shave to scratch before letting it drop slightly to land on top of Glimmer's. It somehow had more of a grounding effect than the tick she'd become accustomed to ever since her first shave six years ago.

"Thanks..." Catra sighed softly. Glimmer squeezed her arm reassuringly, and Catra squeezed the hand in turn with a lopsided smile that she _meant_ to show gratitude but with Catra's luck probably just made her look constipated. She blamed her queerness for said luck.

"Let's go." Catra sighed, finally reaching with her free hand to open the door just as she felt Glimmer's hand move as well as the girl's weight shift to-

Oh. Oh _wow._

Catra raised her hand to her cheek gingerly, freezing entirely as her heart and brain simultaneously spasmed.

"F-For good luck." Glimmer mumbled, moving back to her own seat as she opened the door on her side.

"Y-Yeah... F-For good luck.." Catra echoed in a mumble as she slid out of the car, suddenly feeling like she had no bones in her body despite her bony-yet-muscular physique.

Damn, _one_ kiss on the cheek was enough to leave Catra literally _weak_ at the knees. The thought of doing anything more extreme made her brain race trying to fathom if she could even survive something like an actual kiss.

She tensed at the feeling of Glimmer's hand against hers, the slightest brush being enough to snap the bassist from her thoughts and move forward alongside the girl towards the door she'd been dreading to face since she decided to take this trip in the first place.

Surely there was still time to turn around, right? Glimmer had _promised_ she wouldn't laugh if they just got back in the car and-

"Wildcat!" Scorpia grinned as she opened the door. Right, Catra had already knocked. Scorpia had answered.

She couldn't turn back anymore; This was really happening.

"Hey, Scorps..." Catra chuckled awkwardly.

"Oh, you're Glimmer, right? Adora told me you were taking my old spot as the band's singer, how's that going for you?" The tall woman asked as she ushered the two inside, her grin never faltering- never moving from the same grin she'd given Catra since the day they'd met all those years ago.

Glimmer and Scorpia started making small talk as the three of them sat on the couch and loveseat, though it all went in one ear and out the other as Catra glanced around the place Scorpia had been living since a few months before she left the Rebellion.

There were plants of all kinds on every possible surface other than the dining room table, some even hanging from the ceiling near the windows or on the floor littered near the corners of rooms. The walls were a vibrant mixture of mint green and maroon that although were a bit of an eyesore, Catra had to admit made the place seem more comfortable. Pictures were taped or framed around everywhere as well, mostly of Scorpia and her girlfriend but surprisingly Catra found quite a few of Scorpia and herself, and Perfuma with her friends as well, of course.

Catra was pulled out of her admiring when she felt Glimmer tap her knee, jerking her head back towards the pair to see what they had said.

"Sorry, what?" Catra asked sheepishly to the buff woman sitting in the loveseat, who was staring and grinning at Catra with her eyes as bright as Catra had ever seen them.

"I just asked how you've been! I haven't seen you in a few months and you haven't called, so I was a bit worried you weren't doing well. I'm glad to see that you look healthy, though!" Scorpia beamed. She reminded Catra of a puppy for a moment, her metaphorical tail wagging like crazy the wider she grinned.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, meant to, just..." Catra trailed off.

"Busy?" Scorpia supplemented.

"Yeah, guess you could say that." Catra smiled a pathetic little thing that didn't reach her eyes, which of _course_ caught the Queen of Smile's attention as Scorpia tilted her head slightly.

"Catra, is everything-"

"Scorpia, who was at the door?" A voice came from the hall as Catra tensed.

Right, the girlfriend. Perfuma, was it? Oh shit, Catra was _terrible_ with new people. Why did she think she could come over uninvited like this without it going badly?!

"Oh! Glimmer! And you must be Catra, Scorpia's told me so much about you!" Perfuma-?- said with a cheery grin, extending her hand as she stood in front of the brunette.

Catra wiped her slightly sweaty hands on her pants and raised a hand to shake hers with a greeting nod. "Uh, nice to meet you." She mumbled politely.

"Hey, Perfuma." Glimmer waved. Since when did Sparkles know Scorpia's girlfriend? Who else knew this woman besides her? Did Adora, Lonnie, _Mermista_?

"Oh, I haven't seen you since Bow's graduation! How is he, by the way?" Perfuma smiled, taking a seat beside Scorpia on- as Catra noticed, a _one-person_ \- loveseat.

"Oh, he's good, he's good." Glimmer nodded with a hum, drumming her fingers along her knees as she glanced from Perfuma to Catra and back.

Perfuma nodded and leaned close to Scorpia's ear to whisper something, causing Scorpia to sigh lightly with a relaxed grin before kissing the girl on the cheek and nodding.

"Glimmer, would you like to see what I got Bow for his birthday next month?" Perfuma asked as she stood, smiling at Catra's companion.

Glimmer shot Catra a look, a silent question. _Will you be okay?_

Catra nodded and smiled softly in response. _I'm okay._

"Sure, lead the way." Glimmer nodded as she stood, soon being swept away by the hand as Perfuma took her down the hall.

Catra tensed slightly as she heard a door clicking shut, followed by muffled voices from within. At times like these Catra wished she had the hearing abilities of the animal she shared her name with.

"So..." Scorpia cleared her throat, rubbing her arm. Catra knew it was a sign of nervousness- mostly for the fact that Scorpia had fucking _robotic arms_ that _couldn't itch_ \- and cringed knowing she was about to say something on the serious-side _._

"Why did you come, Wildcat?" Scorpia spoke softly, her eyes scanning Catra for an answer that Catra herself wasn't a hundred percent sure of.

"I came.. For a lot of reasons." Catra answered slowly, lowering her gaze.

Scorpia stayed silent, so she took that as her cue to continue.

"I... I wanted to apologise. P-Properly."

"For what?"

"For _what_?" Catra repeated in disbelief, her eyes widening slightly as she looked up to meet Scorpia's confused and saddened gaze. "F-For everything!"

Scorpia still didn't seem to get it. Catra groaned and hid her face with one hand to speak through her emotions as she struggled to keep them all contained and speak calmly.

"For... For all those times I lead you on. For being a shit friend to you. For not sounding supportive when you told me you were seeing Perfuma. For being angry when you said you wanted to leave the band. For _everything_ , Scorpia." She said softly, her voice barely a whisper as Catra cursed herself while feeling her nose sting with yet-to-be-formed tears.

"Wildcat..." Scorpia said, her tone only further ruffling Catra's feathers.

"Don't use that tone with me. Please. You know how I feel about fucking _pity._ " Catra spat, hating the way her body betrayed her and trembled slightly as she spoke.

The lanky girl thought she was prepared for any reaction Scorpia could have given her: Yelling, disgust, being kicked out, even _sympathy_ \- but she hadn't accounted for Scorpia's next words.

"I forgive you."

"W-What?" Catra looked up at her instantly, her eyes wide and glossy with unshed tears, turning red slightly near the edges from her effort to keep them from falling.

"I knew how you felt about me, Catra. I still do. You see me as a friend, _just_ a friend. And I've come to realise that I see you the same way." Scorpia smiled softly at her with those stupid kind eyes that Catra totally didn't deserve right now. "Perfuma is the one I love, what I felt for you was never on the same level as what I feel for her. So I'm glad you told me the truth all the time, that you kept me honest by letting me know where we stood all the time. Otherwise, I might've never met the love of my life." She rubbed her neck sheepishly as her grin turned shy and a light blush dusted her cheeks.

"N-No! I was... I was _terrible_ to you. I don't- I don't _deserve_ your forgiveness. I don't even deserve your _friendship._ " Catra said hoarsely. Fuck- the tears fell as she blinked rapidly and shook her head.

Scorpia stood and in one swift motion lifted Catra from the couch and into her arms in a bone-crushing hug.

Catra squeaked, trying desperately to wiggle free from her grasp. She shouldn't be hugging her, she shouldn't want to be anywhere _near_ her!

"Catra, it's okay... It's okay..." The older woman repeated slowly as Catra eventually stopped struggling, giving up on her impossible escape.

Scorpia held her a bit longer before setting her down. "Catra, you're my best friend. I love you, you know?" She grinned, resting a hand on her head. "You'll always be important to me, and I'll always be there to tell you that. I care about you, Wildcat. No matter what."

Catra choked back a sob as Scorpia hugged her again, this time hugging back as she cried into the girl's chest.

"T-Thank y-you..." Catra whispered between shaky breaths as Scorpia soothingly rubbed her back with metallic fingers.

"Anytime, Wildcat. Do you feel better now?" Scorpia asked, holding onto Catra's shoulders as she pulled back enough to look into her eyes with a small smile.

Catra mustered a quivering smile and nodded, wiping her tears with the back of her arm.

"Oh!" Scorpia turned around to reach for a box of tissues on the coffee table situated between a bonsai tree and an aloe vera plant.

"Thanks." Catra chuckled, plucking a few out to dry her face and nose properly. She cringed as she noticed the large wet spot she had left over Scorpia's left breast pocket, seeming to catch the woman's attention as well.

"Don't worry about it." Scorpia assured her with a shake of her head. Catra nodded firmly and put the used tissues in a tiny waste basket tucked under the coffee table that was already filled with the soft material- probably from Scorpia, Catra guessed.

Glimmer and Perfuma emerged a few moments later as if on cue, both girls stepping between the pair to stand by their respected partners.

Wait, no, back up- Glimmer was Catra's _friend_ , not _partner._ Keep it together, Catra!

Glimmer gently tugged the hem of Catra's shirt, trying to be discreet as she glanced at her.

 _How did it go?_ Sparkles' eyes seemed to ask.

Catra smiled softly and nodded ever-so-slightly. _Better than I thought._ She answered.

A hand squeezed into hers. _That's good._

Catra squeezed back. _Thanks._

"Oh! The Rebellion has a show tomorrow, right?" Perfuma suddenly perked up as both girls turned their attention from each other to nod to the blonde.

"Oh yeah! Perfuma and I have tickets and everything! We can't wait to see you guys perform, it'll be my first time seeing the band without being onstage myself." Scorpia grinned and wrapped an arm around her girlfriend's waist to pull her into her side as Perfuma nodded excitedly.

"Yeah, speaking of which..." Glimmer gave her hand another small squeeze, "We'd better head back. Thank you for having us!"

"Oh, it was no trouble! After you guys finish your tour you should stop by again! We can have tea or watch movies or whatever you wanna do." Scorpia suggested with a smile, glancing between the musicians for approval.

"Sounds cool." Catra nodded with a lazy smirk, stuffing her free hand into her pocket as she slackened her posture slightly.

"Yeah, I'll definitely see when I'm free." Glimmer nodded as well.

"Well, safe travels, you two!" Perfuma waved as she held the door open for the pair.

"Wildcat." Scorpia called as Catra turned to follow Glimmer through the door.

She hesitantly dropped the girl's hand to turn and face her friend.

Scorpia leaned in close, resting a hand on Catra's shoulder to whisper in her ear. "Be good to Glimmer, okay? She's Perfuma's best friend's best friend- if that makes sense- and she'd get pretty angry if you broke her heart. Just a warning. Perfuma can be scary when she wants to be." She chuckled softly before pulling away with a grin.

Wait, what? What was that supposed to mean? Did she- Was she- How could Scorpia _possibly_ have noticed Catra's feelings for Glimmer in the fifteen minutes- _tops_ \- they'd been there?!

"O-Okay.." Catra stuttered in response, feeling her nose and ears heating up. She looked away quickly, realising her face was probably turning a similar shade to the couple's wallpaper.

Scorpia let out a short laugh and clapped a hand over her back, causing Catra to let out a grunt and stumble forward slightly. "Take care, Wildcat." She said kindly.

"You too, Scorps." Catra nodded with a genuine grin, her chest feeling a lot more relieved than before as her friend waved her off.

She jogged towards the car, where Glimmer was leaning against the passenger side door and glancing worriedly at her.

"What did Scorpia say?" Glimmer asked, then tensed with slightly wider eyes. "Y-You don't have to answer that if you don't want to, I-I get it if it's private." She rushed to correct herself.

Catra chuckled and adopted one of her signature smirks, cocking her head at an easy angle as she quirked a brow. "It's fine, Sparkles. She just wanted to make sure I was okay."

"Are you?" Glimmer asked, biting her lip. Catra had to use every ounce of willpower she had to resist kissing those plump, sugar-sweet lips of hers.

"Yeah, I'm okay, Sparkles." Catra said, sounding a lot more soft and sincere and less teasing and lighthearted than she'd intended.

"Good." Glimmer breathed in relief, smiling as she looked into Catra's eyes.

Catra found herself getting lost in those eyes, not noticing how close their faces had gotten until she had Glimmer backed up and pressed into the door completely.

"I-I, uh, I need in the door." She cleared her throat, looking away to hopefully mask her blush.

"R-Right." Glimmer nodded, sliding to the side and quickly speed-walking around the front of the car to enter her own door.

Catra plopped into her seat with a sigh, stretching back as she reclined her seat a bit after locking her buckle in place.

"I'm proud of you." Glimmer finally spoke again after starting the engine and pulling onto the road.

"Thanks. I'm proud of you, too." Catra chuckled.

"No, I mean it." Glimmer glanced at her briefly before looking back to the road. "What you did was really mature and difficult and I'm proud of you for that."

Catra smiled, her heart fluttering. "Thanks, Sparkles..." She hummed, more genuine this time.

"Anytime, Catra." Glimmer said softly, holding her hand towards the girl without taking her eyes off of the path ahead of them.

 _Anytime_. Did that mean she'd be proud of her anytime? That she'd help her out anytime? Or something else?

Catra decided that she didn't realy care what the answer was, sliding her hand into Glimmer's as she tried to ignore how every cell in her body seemed to scream about how perfect the girl's hand felt in her own.

Today had been a success, that's what mattered. Glimmer had been by her side, which was a plus.

A very big plus.

Oh geez, Catra had it bad.

She bit her lip at the realisation, stealing a glance at Glimmer as a smile tugged at her face.

Maybe she could get used to it, though.


	11. Missing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our thembo hasn't had much spotlight in a few chapters, so have a thembo centric chappy uwu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Adora and kin them so hard okay I know this is Glitra but let me HAVE this-

Adora paced back and forth across the parking lot, biting their lip as they counted their steps meticulously to eighteen each time before turning around.

"Adora!" Lonnie called, stepping in front of them to put an end to the muttering and pacing that had been driving the other members of the Rebellion crazy since they'd started nearly eight minutes ago.

"Yes?" Adora answered instantly, snapping to attention at the sound of their name as they straightened like a soldier.

"You need to calm down. Can you please, _finally_ tell us what's going on?" Lonnie asked slowly.

"Catra and Glimmer are gone." Adora blurted frantically.

"Gone?" Sea Hawk piped up. "Wherever could they have gone? Our mighty vessel of transportation is still here!" He announced, gesturing to the tour bus parked a few feet away.

"There's Uber." Mermista suggested.

"Or car rentals." Lonnie added.

"Or a taxi."

"Or the city bus-"

"Guys, focus!" Adora groaned, gripping the sides of their head.

"Sorry." Lonnie patted their shoulder lightly. "Have you texted them? Maybe they went out exploring or something. You know, hitting the town before another show?" She shrugged.

"Both of their phones are off, I can't get any messages through." Adora said, showing the girl her chats to prove their point.

"Maybe they like, finally went off to make out or something." Mermista rolled her eyes. "I swear those two hold more sexual tension than couples in cheesy rom-coms." She scrunched her nose slightly as she spoke with distaste.

"No, no. Why would they-" Adora paused, resting a hand on their chin to consider the option.

"Adora, you _know_ that's not what they're doing." Lonnie deadpanned.

"Right. Yes. Joke idea." Adora nodded, though they couldn't help but think that it might hold some truth.

Adora hadn't told the other members about Catra and Glimmer's oblivious crushes on each other yet, not seeing it as their place to expose them like that.

Adora was _very_ serious about the "girl/bro code", as Glimmer or Catra would have put it. Adora loved rules, especially codes.

Right, okay, focus Adora! Missing friends, possibly making out somewhere but not likely!

"Well, where could they go? What's there to do in Plumeria?" Lonnie asked.

"Not much." Mermista crossed her arms and sighed in boredom.

"I saw a few signs for some clubs, most with karaoke bars!" Sea Hawk said, his eyes sparkling while Mermista groaned quietly beside him.

"Clubs aren't _open_ at this time of day." Mermista reminded.

"Okay, so they aren't clubbing or otherwise drinking. Where else?" Lonnie pressed, trying to be the logical one since Adora was clearly too worked up to do so themself.

"At the store? Glimmer loves shopping." Adora shrugged in thought.

"Well that would explain _Glimmer_ , but Catra _hates_ shopping, remember? So that's out." Lonnie shook her head.

"How do we know their together, my percussion playing pal?" Sea Hawk inquired.

"They both went missing around the same time and neither of them have their phones on. It just makes sense that, being new to this town, they'd stick with someone they knew." Adora reasoned with a shake of their head and a sigh as Lonnie nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. C'mon guys. Think! Where would Catra and Glimmer think to go in Plumeria?" Lonnie asked.

Adora hummed and then gasped, perking up as they snapped their fingers. "I've got it!"

~~~

"Adora..." Mermista trailed off, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"When you said 'I've got it', I _kind_ of thought you meant you _actually_ thought you knew where they would be." Lonnie finished at her side, crossing her arms as she watched her friend press their face against the glass of yet another enclosure.

"Oh come on! Plumeria has the biggest pet store on _Etheria._ Who _wouldn't_ want to stop by and see these little _cutie patooties_?" They cooed in a baby voice, wiggling their finger in front of the glass seperating them from a litter of labrador pups.

"Would you like to hold one, valued customer?" A worker greeted the blonde with such a cheery grin that Mermista scoffed and rolled her eyes.

" _Uh_ , yes please!" Adora answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world, their eyes sparkling.

Lonnie sighed deeply, smacking her palm into her forehead as she shook it in disbelief.

Leave it to the resident thembo to forgo their _search_ party for a _puppy_ party.

"Mermista! They have _snakes_!" Sea Hawk announced from the other side of the huge store.

"Oh dear god." Mermista mumbled before dashing off towards the man. "Sea Hawk, do _not_ try to 'befriend' dangerous creatures again!" She shouted.

Lonnie sighed, being left alone with Adora.

The blonde was laying on the floor and giggling as a young black lab sat on their chest and licked their face.

"Stop it stop it! Okay, don't stop!" They laughed, grinning as they tried to dodge the pup's slobbery tongue kisses by moving their face side to side.

"Adora." Lonnie called out, breaking the blonde out of a puppy trance to realise they weren't alone.

"Yeah?" They answered, scratching the pooch's ear.

"Catra and Glimmer?" Lonnie raised a brow, resting a hand on her hip.

The guitarist's eyes widened as they sat up quickly, letting the dog drop from their chest to their lap softly.

"Excuse me, ma'am, but we have to get going!" Adora apologised, handing the puppy back to the worker before grabbing Lonnie's hand to rush back towards the entrance.

"Mermista, Sea Hawk! We're leaving!" Lonnie shouted.

"Finally!" Mermista groaned, practically dragging Sea Hawk along with them.

"Nooo! My ophidian friends!" Sea Hawk lamented, reaching back towards the reptile section with a forlorn expression. "Fret not, our _adven-cha_ shall continue at a later time!"

Mermista huffed in irritation, grabbing him by the ear to tug him towards the bus with a trail of "Ow ow ow _ow_ "s as they walked.

~~~

"Uh, Mermista?" Adora rubbed their neck as they glanced around while standing in front of a large fountain at the center of the plaza. "Why would Catra and Glimmer be at the mall? We already said Catra hates shopping."

"Oh, so _you_ and _Sea Hawk_ get to have some fun but it's suddenly a _crime_ if I want a manicure?" Mermista responded as she lazily checked her nails with a frown.

Adora sighed and sat down. "Fine. Let me know when you're done."

"Cool. Lonnie, you coming with?" Mermista raised a brow.

"Hell yeah!" Lonnie grinned, pumping her fist in the air.

"I shall escort you ladies to the nail salon! Onward, _adven-cha_!" Sea Hawk shouted, lifting one foot onto the railing of the fountain as he pointed off towards the shop with a hand on his hip.

"If you come, you have to get your nails done. They're _hideous._ " Mermista said, eyeing his cuticles critically.

"Deal." He nodded eagerly as the trio headed off to get their nails fixed.

"Just you and me, reflection Adora." Adora mumbled with a pout as they glanced into the fountain water.

They laid back on the ledge of the concrete centerpiece with a hum, dangling one foot over the edge opposing the water.

"Adora!" The blonde's eyes shot open. Oh crap, how long had they been asleep for? On a dirty fountain no less?!

"Come on. Catra just texted me asking where everybody went. They were in town apparently. Mystery solved." Mermista said, continuing to poke the guitarist in the side after they woke up.

Adora sat up quickly, swinging their legs over the side to stand and stretch. "Awesome! So we're heading back?" They grinned. They never did like malls, too dirty and too many people without any order or structure.

Lonnie nodded, admiring her new coat of black nail polish with little green neon skulls that glowed in the dark. "Yeah, I guess." She hummed absently.

Sea Hawk "ooh"ed as well, his eyes shining almost as bright as the gleam from his freshly trimmed and cleansed fingernails.

Adora glanced at their side to notice that Mermista had also chosen to fancy up her nail bed, aquiring some navy blue acrylics with sky blue and white waved painted onto the tips.

"You could've come and gotten some." Mermista said once she noticed Adora staring.

The blonde quickly shook their head. "Nevermind that, let's get back to the hotel." They said quickly.

"Fine, fine." Lonnie said with a sigh, ushering the other members forward towards the entrance they came from.

~~~

"Glimmerrr!" Adora cried, practically throwing herself into the shorter woman's arms.

"Adoraaa!" Glimmer cried back in a mocking tone, a grin on her face as she patted her friend's back whilst hugging tightly.

They pulled away long enough to side-step and envelope Catra in their arms just as tight, causing the brunette to squeak and try to squirm away with a literal _hiss_.

"'Dora! Lay off, will ya?!" She growled in annoyance.

Adora obeyed, releasing Catra from their hold as their best friend sighed in relief.

"Where _were_ you two?!" Adora asked, glancing frantically between the girls.

Catra and Glimmer tensed simultaneously, sharing a glance before they both smiled warmly at each other and giggled softly.

Wait, _what_?

"That's a secret between Sparkles and I, 'Dora." Catra smirked, rubbing her neck as her eyes darted towards Glimmer and back to the blonde.

"Sorry, Adora." Glimmer chuckled, hiding her blushy grin behind a hand as she ran her free hand through her short mop of pink hair.

"Whaaaat?! No! What happened with you two? Where did you go? What did you do?" Adora asked in a rapid-fire string of questions, their eyes wide with curiosity.

"Adora." Lonnie smirked, resting a hand on their shoulder. "Let it go."

"But-!"

" _Adora._ " Lonnie repeated, tilting her head slightly to gesture to their friends as Catra and Glimmer walked back towards the hotel.

Adora looked harder and noticed their pinkies were intertwined, Glimmer giggling at something Catra said as the brunette smirked with more life in her eyes than Adora'd seen in a long time.

Oh. _Oh._ _**Oh.**_

Okay, yeah. That was their secret.

Adora _totally_ wasn't going to drive themself crazy trying to crack the code.

Definitely not.

Haha.


	12. Ask

Two more locations. Just two locations before the end of the tour.

Glimmer knew she had taken Scorpia's place halfway through the tour, but her gigs still seemed to pass by too quick for her.

She wasn't ready to leave the Rebellion yet, wasn't ready to leave her new friends or the sights or the travel. She _definitely_ wasn't ready to leave Catra.

Which is what lead Glimmer to the brunette's room well after when Glimmer knew she would be asleep. Asleep and exhausted, at that- Glimmer knew for a fact that Catra hadn't slept the night before because every time Glimmer would check her phone when she woke from fitful bouts of slumber the girl would still appear active on one of various social media sites she followed her on in a _not-creepy way_ thank you very much!

"Be cool, Moonstone. You aren't asking for her hand in marriage, just if she wants to hang out sometime." Glimmer whispered, trying to give herself a pep talk as her hand stayed hovered inches from knocking like it had been for the past five minutes.

She took a final deep breath and pulled her hand back to knock just as it opened to reveal Catra, fully awake with eyes wide in surprise.

"Oh. Sparkles." Catra blinked as the stocky girl slowly lowered her hand. "Hey."

"Hey-" Glimmer squeaked before clearing her throat to try again. "Hey, hey. What's uh- What're you... Up to?" She asked slowly, resting a hand in her pocket as she internally screamed when her other hand formed a finger gun at the woman.

A fucking _finger gun._ Universe, please strike her down before she further dies of shame!

"I was just going to see-" Catra stopped herself, the faintest change in tint to her cheeks appearing as she ran a hand through her messy bed head. "T-The stars. Up. Roof."

"Oh, stargazing?" Glimmer tilted her head, unaware that Catra was even interested in something like that.

"Yeah well, 'Dora was talking about how you can see them really well here apparently so I thought I'd try." She shrugged and brushed past Glimmer to walk down the hall.

She paused beside the elevators, hands still in her pockets as she made no move to press the buttons.

"Did you... Uh..." The bassist turned on a heel to face her, moving her hands inside of her pockets as she tapped a foot and looked at her shoes. "Wanna come?"

"Me? Come? With you?" Glimmer sputtered. Was the universe finally giving her some good karma for her years of being a good person?!

Catra nodded once, giving the shorter girl all the motivation her legs needed to speed-walk to Catra as fast as she could without making her eagerness blindingly obvious.

The elevator ride up was silent, save for the sound of the machine itself and the instrumental music floating softly through the shaft.

Glimmer appriciated the silence- it gave her time to practice the ways she could possibly ask Catra for a visit.

 _So I know Adora's place is just in the next town over from mine, not a far drive at all!_ \- No, that would make it sound like she was planning her kidnapping or something.

 _My walls are pretty thick if you ever wanna come over to practice!_ \- Again, not helping the creep factor very much.

 _I was thinking after the tour I could come see you? Or you could see me? Or we could meet in the middle?_ \- Desperate, Glimmer, desperate!

"Sparkles?"

The nickname Glimmer had been begrudgingly getting used to- despite the fact that it was an obvious jab at her phase of glitter hairspray when she first officially met Catra during her sophomore year- tore her from her thoughts as she quickly exited the elevator before the doors closed on her.

Catra snickered softly and shook her head with a small smile, gaze trained to the floor as she walked just ahead of Glimmer towards the edge of the roof.

There was a glass barrier a few inches thick overlooking the ledge all the way around the building, with a black, wood slab over the top that Catra used to rest her elbows while leaning forward and crossing her feet at the ankles.

Glimmer paused a moment to admire how the wind blew through Catra, moving hardly any of her hair while her jacket billowed about from it.

She sidled up about a foot away from the girl- close enough to feel her body heat, far enough that they wouldn't brush together and send Glimmer reeling- and copied her position.

"Do you know any constellations?" Glimmer asked without looking at her, her gaze focused on the stars that- as Catra predicted- were perfectly visible.

She saw the brunette shrug in her peripheral vision. "Adora taught me some of the major ones, but that's about it."

"Which ones?" Glimmer pressed, wanting to know anything about Catra that the girl was willing to share with her.

"The Big Dipper, which is actually part of a bigger star formation called Ursa Major, and of course the Little Dipper, or Ursa Minor. The big bear and little bear constellations." Catra said, gesturing lazily as she moved her hand in fluid motions to trace the constellations in the sky.

"Impressive." Glimmer said in a playful tone, nodding with a grin.

"Your turn." Catra chuckled, nudging Glimmer's elbow with her own.

"Well if you can find both Ursas, you can find Draco. The dragon constellation. It kind of loops around both of them a little bit." Glimmer explained, doing as the other girl had done and tracing it in the sky, using her pointer finger as she closed one eye to focus her gaze.

Catra giggled beside her as Glimmer paused to look at her.

"No no, keep going! You just had this look on your face while you were doing it." Catra said with a grin, though there was no tease or quip in her tone.

Glimmer blushed regardless and turned to look towards the ledge again, running a hand through her hair.

"So cute." Catra said.

Glimmer jerked her head back to look at her just as the lanky girl stood stiff, as if she hadn't meant to say it aloud.

Cute? Glimmer? Catra thought- No, she _had_ to have misheard.

"I-I mean-" Catra began, her voice sounding forced and almost mechanical with nerves, "The face you made. It was cute."

Glimmer supposed it was supposed to sound like a tease, but for some reason it sounded liked anything but. She creased her brows slightly, blinking at the taller girl in confusion.

"Is something on your mind, Catra?" She asked quickly.

Catra seemed to tense further- if that were even possible- before looking towards the ledge again.

"Catra." She repeated in a softer tone. "You _know_ you can talk to me."

"I-" The brunette caught the bite in her tone and corrected it, "I-I know." She sighed.

Glimmer waited patiently for her to elaborate.

"That's why it's so hard to talk to you." Catra mumbled, chuckling weakly.

Glimmer blinked. It was hard to talk to her, because could talk to her? She didn't understand what Catra meant and it clearly showed on her face as she stared at the girl.

"I mean," Catra began as if reading her thoughts, "It's just a bit weird hearing someone say that, I guess."

"Like, Adora says it a lot but they're like a sibling to me, ya know? And Scorpia..." She trailed off to rub her neck. "A-Anyway, I'm just still not used to people wanting me to be... Open, I guess." She shrugged.

Glimmer hummed, looking back up at the sky. "Well, I won't _make_ you say anything if you don't want to, I'm just trying to let you know that if you _do_ have anything to say.. That I want you to say it." She smiled softly without looking at her.

She tensed slightly as she heard and felt Catra stepping closer to her, their elbows now touching just slightly.

Glimmer turned her head to see Catra already looking at her before both girls blushed and looked back towards the stars above.

"Looks like the tour's almost over, huh..." Catra's voice broke the silence a stretch of time later.

Glimmer let out a hum and nodded slightly. "Guess so. I wish I could've been here from the start, I'm gonna miss all of this."

" _Especially you._ " She added in her head, deciding that thought would better be kept to herself.

"Yeah, me too..." Catra sighed softly.

Glimmer felt her eyes on her again, causing the woman to blush before slowly turning her head to look at Catra again. This time the brunette didn't look away, locking eyes with Glimmer as time seemed to stop around them.

She looked at every detail she could of Catra's face with what little time she knew she had. The freckles along the bridge of her nose and cheeks, her thin lips that Glimmer adored seeing turned upward, a fading scar that ran across the left side of her jaw from her ear to her chin that could easily be missed if you didn't know to look for it. Though what she focused on more than anything were Catra's eyes- vibrant, gorgeous pools of amber and blue-green that Glimmer felt she could drown in if she weren't careful- as they shone with the pale light of the stars.

"Glimmer?" Catra spoke as a shudder ran down her spine.

Catra had never called her by her name before, at least not in a tone like _that_.

"Y-Yes?" Glimmer stuttered lamely, cursing herself internally for the blunder as she noticed a corner of Catra's lip twitch like she were fighting a smile.

"I was wondering if, like, maybe-" Catra bit her lip, blinking a few times, "Maybe after the tour, if you want, you and I can..."

"If we can...?" Glimmer urged breathlessly, dying to see where this question lead.

"Look, Adora says you live nearby so if it isn't too much trouble or anything I was thinking-"

"Catra-"

"I-I know it's probably dumb to even ask, but I just wanted to make sure that-"

" _Catra._ "

The brunette paused her adorable rambling as Glimmer smiled at her and reached forward, grabbing one of her hands between both of her own.

"I'd love to hang out with you after the tour. Wherever, whenever." Glimmer responded softly, using both thumbs to gently smooth over the skin of Catra's arm. She giggled as she saw some goosebumps raise along the girl's arm, making a mental note to ask Adora if Catra was ticklish later.

"I.... M-Me too. I'd like that, too." Catra breathed, relaxing as she grinned more genuinely at the girl.

The sight had Glimmer feeling weak at the knees as she tried to smile back without looking distressed from how hard her heart was racing.

Would Catra hear how loud her heart was beating in the close distance? Would she feel it through their joined hands? What if she could? How would Catra react to these feelings her heart was so _desperate_ to convey?

Catra chuckled and leaned forward slightly as Glimmer's heart soared higher and her breath hitched slightly.

She let out a small breath of relief as the brunette simply rested their foreheads together, smirking with her eyes closed.

"Sorry, you were making a cute face again and I didn't want to be weird and stare." The bassist mumbled, a giggle in the background of her playful tone.

Glimmer felt her face heat up from her words as she let out a girlish giggle, sounding like her teenage self again around little "crush of the week"s. "You're seriously weird." She mumbled back, giving the girl's hand a slight squeeze.

" _I'm_ weird? Which one of us is named Glimmer again? Or- that's right- has _pink_ hair? By _choice_?" Catra teased, opening her amber eye- the one that sent lightning through Glimmer every time it landed on her- to smirk at her.

"Oh shut up. At least I'm not named after an animal." Glimmer said back.

"Hey, that's a chosen name, you jerk." Catra laughed softly, leaning her head back to grin lazily as she withdrew her hands to stick into her pockets.

Glimmer blinked at her in surprise as the girl tilted her head slightly and slumped her posture a bit.

"Did Adora not tell you?" She asked, more amusement in her tone than confusion.

"No!" Glimmer scoffed, suddenly feeling like she could throttle her friend for withholding such information from her.

"Wanna know what it is?" Catra smirked. "You've gotta tell me your middle name first, then." She added before Glimmer could even respond.

"What? How is that fair? You haven't told me your middle name!" Glimmer whined.

"I don't have one to give." The brunette shrugged.

Glimmer's jaw dropped. "You don't _have_ a middle _name_?" She asked in disbelief.

"Nope." Catra said, popping it for emphasis.

"I- Fine." Glimmer agreed, shaking her head.

Catra leaned to the side against the railing, her eyes full of mischief and fire hot enough to make Glimmer feel like she was melting as they waited impatiently for her to speak.

"It's Michaela, Glimmer Michaela Moonstone. After my dad, Micah." Glimmer explained, rubbing her arm as she braced for some sort of "daddy's girl" joke or something like she was accustomed to when people heard her middle name coupled with her successful father's.

"You and your dad close?" Catra asked.

Glimmer blinked in surprise at her. The old Catra would've made at least three jokes in the silent moments she spent looking at her. Though, Glimmer thought to herself, maybe the "new" Catra was trying to work on that.

"Y-Yeah. We're close." Glimmer nodded. "Or, we were when I was younger, at least. We've kind of drifted since high school, but I guess that's how it goes for most people." She shrugged.

Catra hummed and nodded before cracking a grin again. "Ready for my birth name now?" She asked like it was the biggest secret in the galaxy and only she could answer. Glimmer nodded eagerly, earning a laugh.

"It's Catrina." The lanky girl finally revealed.

Glimmer paused for a moment, brows furrowing. "Wait... So your new name is just your old name with two less letters?" She blinked at her.

Catra threw her head back with a laugh, showing off her teeth in a rare toothy grin that revealed what almost looked like a fang instead of a canine. Glimmer added it to the ever-growing list of things she liked about Catra.

"I guess it is." Catra said, looking into her eyes again as she kept the grin in place. "Catr _in_ a was just so _out,_ ya know?" She joked.

Glimmer held her face in a palm, resisting the urge to laugh at the god-awful joke as she hid her matching grin. "Oh my god, you didn't."

"Totally did, Sparkles." Catra smirked and chuckled proudly at her own lame dad joke.

"You are _so_ weird." Glimmer said again, repeating her words from earlier.

"Oh, you love it." Catra teased, then froze.

Glimmer tensed, burning deeper. Right, she had technically already confessed to the girl. Great.

"Uh.." Catra cleared her throat. "It's getting kinda cold, wanna head in?" She asked, pointing a thumb towards the elevator.

"Yeah." Glimmer sighed and nodded, thankful that the girl had chosen to change the subject before things got awkward.

The two started walking towards the elevator side by side, their hands brushing slightly.

Glimmer choked a slight gasp as she felt Catra's hand slide into hers, the sound causing the brunette to instantly let go like she had touched hot iron.

"Sorry." She said quickly.

Glimmer took her hand again, lacing their fingers. "No, don't be." She said softly with a slight squeeze.

If anyone, Glimmer felt _she_ should be the sorry one. She knew Catra wanted to be just friends with her, yet the girl couldn't stop her heart from nearly stopping anytime the brunette so much as held her hand! She sure was a lousy friend for being unable to control her feelings like this.

"Hey." Catra said as the doors slid closed, breaking Glimmer from her thoughts.

"Yeah?" The shorter woman responded, turning her head to look at her.

Catra juat shrugged and gave her hand a gentle squeeze, running her thumb over Glimmer's knuckles slowly as a shudder tore through the base of her spine to her toes and back up again in a manner of moments.

"Nothing. You just looked so serious." She smiled softly, tilting her head a bit. "You don't have to think so much around me, okay? I get you're a big shot teacher or something but you don't have to think like one twenty-four-seven." She teased.

Glimmer rolled her eyes at the jab to her education major, giggling softly. "Right, I forgot that theatre is much cooler than teaching." She retorted playfully.

"I'm a tech major and you know it. Theatre was just what I did for fun and I happen to have a certificate saying I fucking _crush_ it." Catra stuck her chin up proudly.

"Forgive me, oh wise music-techie-genius. I know not the error of my _useful life skills_ having ways." Glimmer said dramatically.

"Shut up." Catra snorted, nudging her slightly as Glimmer's heart jolted yet again that night.

She really _was_ falling hard for this weirdo, wasn't she?

Glimmer caught Catra's gaze again for a moment before both girls fell into a fit of giggles, holding each other's hand tightly.

Falling couldn't hurt that much this time, she thought. Could it?

Glimmer decided that she didn't really care, just wanting to be content with whatever came her way with Catra.

Falling didn't seem that bad when she thought about doing it for Catra, not bad at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally feels like we're getting somewhere, eh gays?
> 
> Hope you enjoyed and as always be on the look for another chapter coming out as soon as I find time to finish and proofread!!
> 
> <333


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